Waxing Moon
by Azeel Rose
Summary: It's not the end of the story for the castaways of Flight 29 Down nor the folks from Forks. Flight 29 Down/Twilight crossover. Please read the initial Author's Note and Spoiler Alert at the beginning of the first chapter. Chapter 10 is up!
1. Island

Disclaimer: I do not own Flight 29 Down or the Twilight books by Stephanie Meyer (including New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn).

SPOILER ALERT!! This story takes places directly after Breaking Dawn and will contain plot details from it and the rest of the books. DO NOT READ IF YOU DO NOT WANT TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENS IN BREAKING DAWN! This story also includes important details from Hotel Tango.

Author's Note: It's not the end of the story for the castaways of Flight 29 Down nor the paranormal residents of Forks. This story will have around thirty chapters (give or take) and I will upload two per week. The chapters will alternate between the points of view of Flight 29 Down members (Melissa and Jackson) and the folks from Forks (Jacob, Seth, Leah, and Nessie). There will be a sequel directly following this story called **_Waning Moon_**. Enjoy!

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Melissa Wu dreamt of wolves. She could hear them calling lonely and anguished. She smelled their musky scent as she brushed up against their mammoth shoulders. In her dreams she ran with the wolves. Her head was full of impossible speed and intoxicating power. The first night she dreamt of them she awoke abruptly, sweating, in her ever degrading sleeping bag. She didn't cry out, didn't scream. She just breathed until her heart rate was back to normal and listened to Daley's soft snore's beside her.

Ever since that night the wolves became her constant companions. Every night she would run with them and every night the dreams would become more vivid. The wolves were larger than she first perceived them. They were massive with rippling muscles and powerful haunches. In the morning she was left feeling unsettled and anxious. Her brain struggled to comprehend the dreams as she lugged water and tried to demistify the meaning behind them while she cut fruit.

She was extremely careful to guard these dreams. She knew Daley would shrug them off and Nathan would be politley concerned until a much greater disaster became caught his attention. She would never tell Eric or Taylor. Lex might be somewhat helpful but she didn't want to burden his young self with her peculiar dreams. He already had too much to think of. And Jackson? What would Jackson say? Somehow she couldn't bring it up with him. She could seem him becoming more agitated and restless each day. She had an irrational belief that telling him these dreams, that were already so filled with desperation, would be the catalyst in what she knew was coming.

When Abby arrived back at camp, feral almost , Melissa knew that nothing would be the same. Abby brought a whirlwind of doubt to the camp. Daley blamed her for breaking up the group, but Melissa knew it had started long before that. After all she had been dreaming of it for months. Dreaming of escape, of change, and pounding paws. Eric had been rebellious from day one and Jackson, well she knew him and understood. When they stood together near the end Melissa could not bring herself to raise her hand despite Daley's anguished face and Nathan's apparent disappointment. When they first crashed on this deathly beautiful island separation meant death, but now, undeniabley, staying together would doom them. It was decided. They would break up. Their family would dissemble for the greater good and Melissa's heart was torn in two.

Abby and Eric's absence would cause her to worry she knew, but Jackson. . . . she ached at the thought of him leaving. She was unmistakenly drawn to him. He was craggy and intense. He _needed_ her. He needed her to give him "security" and she needed to give it to him. Despite what everyone else thought, Melissa did not like being vulnerable. She thrived in the role of caretaker and could not stomach victim. She had catered to the feelings of her mother all her life, she catered to Nathans for much of his, and now she longed to lose herself in caring for Jackson. Especially now , stranded on this island with only her desperate worries and the inner dramas to focus on.

She went to him that night. The moon was swollen and pulsating in the sky as she trudged through the sand. She hadn't made up her mind yet. Her heart was waiting, throbbing with the moon. She came up behind him careful, quiet. She didn't want to startle him. She didn't want to spook him into running away. She was partially hidden behind a tree and in the darkness of the night Jackson couldn't see her. He was kneeling somewhat awkwardly in the sand shoulder muscles working as he sawed mercilessly away at a discarded branch. Suddenly he flinched and cursed harshly. Melissa was at his side in a second. He looked up at her in suprise. Melissa knelt next to him seamlessly and saw that he was clutching his left hand. He was silent as she took his hand in hers and opened his clenched fist with her own capable fingers. There was a long gash across his palm. Blood had already started seeping and it looked maroon in the dark. Melissa felt for some ludicrous reason compelled to lick the blood away, to clean the wound. This stupid island was making her wild just like Abby. She almost laughed out loud at the thought. Melissa Wu, wild girl.

"We need to clean it," she whispered meeting his eyes. Jackson blinked. He was still in shock. Whether it was from the gash on his palm or her sudden appearance she couldn't telll. He cleared his throat.

"Yeah. Yeah, that's a good idea. But I don't have. Well, I don't" he stuttered. But Melissa had already ripped her bandana in two and had wetted one with her own water bottle. She moved to sit indian-style and motioned for him to do so as well. He nodded and followed suit, but stretched his legs out in front of him. Melissa was intent on her task and began to gently clean the wound. At first Jackson winced but soon he relaxed and she was acutely aware of his even breathing rustling the naked hairs of her arm. After she had finished cleaning the wound she took the dry bandana and tied it tight around his hand.

"There!" she said making a show of dusting of her hands. "My work is done" she told him cheerfully glad to find a way to break the intensity. She looked up at him smiling. "Of course you'll need to visit the first-aid kit later. This is just a temporary fix!". He didn't seem to register her words. He was staring at her hard, like he couldn't figure something out. Growing uncomfortable under his gaze Melissa picked up the camp knife he had been using and and wiped it in the sand. "You should be more careful," she said more seriously studying the slightly pitted edge of the knife. Melissa's concentration was broken when Jackson jumped to his feet and started pacing back and forth in front of her.

"Jackson," she whispered. "What's wrong?". He whirled to face her brow furrowed and jaw tight.

"I can't stay here," he told her voice edging on angry. He folded his arms defiantly and glared at her. Melissa was taken aback by his sudden change in manner. She slowly rose to her feet.

"Jackson..." she began reaching out to him. He held up a hand to stop her, the bandaged one, tied with her bandana. Jackson followed her gaze and dropped his hand, sighing. Suddenly he looked tired and his shoulders slumped. His voice cracked when he spoke.

"I just can't stay here Mel. It's killing me. Just don't... I can't ...," Jackson kicked the sand in frustration. He looked at her again eyes both pleading and angry at the same time. "I have to do something,".

All at once Melissa understood. She closed her eyes and she could feel the anxiety emanating off of him matching her own manic feelings. She could almost feel the ground shake benath her from the pounding of the paws of the wolves from her dreams. She opened her eyes and looked skyward. The moon blinked back at her through the trees. The pulsating stopped and her heart bacame still. She knew the answer now. Jackson was staring at her again.

"I know," she said. "I know, and I'm going with you,"

The next morning Melissa set off with Jackson, Eric,and Abby. She said her good-byes however painful and marched away, away from camp, away from certainty, and even farther away from sanity. Melissa thought that running would help, that breaking away from the others and "doing something" as Jackson had said would ease the tremendous anxiety within her. But the dreams didn't stop. Even while exploring the island the wolves intruded on her daily thoughts. Sometimes collecting firewood she would see a massive shaggy form out of the corner of her eye only to turn and nothing would be there. Other times she could almost swear she smelled something pungent, woody, and wild only for it too to fade and she could only smell the salty air from the ocean.

She tried her best to focus all her attention on helping her friends, but there were moments where she would catch herself coming quickly to a rage. She snapped at Eric more than once and had a difficult time not wringing Abby's neck. She was surprised at the visciousness rising up within her. She was terrified of it. With only Jackson could she keep her cool. She could just watch him and her blood would cool and her heart calm. It was the pure ectasty on his face, the thrill of being in charge of his own fate, the knowing that he was in control of the future in that very moment. Melissa longed for that control, she craved it, for she saw in her future something immense and life-altering. Something she was fighting with all of her being. She was in horror of these feelings and images in her head. Something was going to happen, worse, much worse than being stuck on this island, and it scared the hell out of her.

Still, she continued to do her best. She threw herself into helping the others. Whenever there was task to complete she volunteered, whether it was collecting fruit, fetching a sleeping bag to catch an unruly chicken, or to sail the altered pilot's raft to get help. She did all she could do to keep the wolves and the panic that accompanied them from bubbling up in her consciouness. No one noticed her internal struggle. They were all dealing with their own demons. Jackson was caught up in their mission and clearly not open to Melissa's gentle proddings. Abby was still wild and Eric was just ... Eric. The day that Eric had almost drowned, Melissa had to fight herself from killing him anyway. As they lay panting on the beach terrified and sopping wet Eric had the gall to snipe at her. Snipe at her! The one who had just saved him. The one who had been saving him consistently on this god forsaken island and he had the nerve to criticize her! Suddenly she was sick of it. Anger replaced her fear and she tore into him. She could see his blood shot eyes get wider and wider as she spit out everything that she had been wanting to say to him since the first day, hell since the first grade.

"Survival of the fittest" she growled at him pushing herself off the ground.

In that one second she understood what Abby had been trying to say. She wasn't going to carry him and apparently Eric had got the message. Much later that evening he had muttered an embarrassed apology to her and even though she had prepared herself to be much angrier at him for a lot longer she had to let him off the hook.

Truthfully the anger wasn't about him. The anger was about the fear. It had occured to her while dragging Eric out of the ocean water that she shouldn't be able to that. She had never been a strong swimmer and now here she was fighting the current and pulling a boy that weighed more than she did with her. She didn't want to think about it anymore. Didn't she have enough to deal with without this nagging anxiety and uneasy awareness that something wasn't right? It was just about surviving and getting through. Before on the beach she felt she didn't have enough energy to be constantly saving Eric and now she felt like she didn't have enough energy to even stay mad at him, to even think about him. She had to survive this and that meant letting everything else go. She wouldn't worry. She wouldn't care. She would just do what needed to be done. Thankfully, as it turned out later. She didn't need to even consider Eric. He managed to get a grip of himself in the hours to come and altered his attitude so much so that it shocked everyone including her.

The suspense and accompaning distracting emotions following Eric's near death experience was enough to carry her through to the end of their time on the island. Running into the others and staying safe from their old pilot kept her adrenoline pumping and her mind constantly on the action at hand. It was only after the outpouring of utter happiness and relief that came from the sight of the rescue planes did the wolves return and she could hear them whining and yipping in the corner of her mind as she packed up all of her things. There was a storm coming literally and metaphorically. Her dream wolves seemed to be warning her of it's upcoming arrival. Their resucers had called the impeding tropical storm "Melissa" and she almost gagged on the irony.

She was sitting crouched on the ground when he came up behind her, an almost reversal of their positions from the day they left camp. His acceptance of her help soothed her anxious self almost as much as his careful embrace. He held her softly but with enough pressure to let her know that he had made his choice. When they pulled apart he was looking at her again. His look was appraising, but a little confused also. She suspected that having someone practically devote themselves to him and his wellfare was something completely foriegn to him and therefore confounding. Quickly though she became uncomfortable under his gaze and blushed slightly.

"What?" she asked him, slightly irritated. You would think she would like this open gawk-fest from Jackson, but now she felt oddly transparent and was afraid that somehow he could see the insanity in her head. She hated feeling like that. Jackson blinked.

"You're hot," he told her. Melissa couldn't stop her eyebrows from raising in surprise and she could feel a blush working its way from the back of her neck.

"No! No, sorry. That's not what I meant. I meant your skin! I mean, your skin is hot to touch!" he almost shouted, flushing himself, and standing up quickly. Melissa narrowed her eyes in thought. She didn't feel warm. Maybe she was coming down with something? She sighed deeply. Great, that's just what she needed. Jackson took her defeated expression as something else and quickly back tracked.

"Oh, not... not that your not... " he stuttered looking vastly uncomfortable. Melissa felt her blush deepen and she held up her hands in protest.

"I understand," she said and smiled slightly while rising to her feet. "I'm going to go see if Nathan needs any help. I'll see you in a bit," she told him and walked away swiftly before he could get another word in.

"Later," Jackson called after her. Melissa smiled again and let her embarrasment ebb away from her. At least that was going well. She laughed nervously and waved to Nathan who was down the beach struggling with his own pack. He squinted his eyes at her and grinned, laughing because she was laughing. She shook her head in wonderment. It seemed just yesterday that she and Nathan were goofing off and laughing on the plane. Melissa felt the wind pick up, tugging on her hair. She glanced up at the storm rolling there direction. Already she could see little pricks of lightening already flashing in the the distance.

"Are you ready miss?" a man wearing a bright orange vest asked.

"I think so," she told him. He smiled and she could see the age lines surrounding his eyes.

"I hope so," she whispered to herself as he walked over to Jory and asked her the very same question. Melissa breathed in deeply savoring the air of the island and the sand beneath her feet.

"I hope so," she whispered again staring at the coming storm once more, but in her heart she knew that she would never be ready for whatever disaster was on the horizon.

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Author's Note: Alright! You made it through the first chapter! Hopefully, you didn't fall asleep. The next chapter will be from Jacob's point of view. Once again, SPOILER ALERT!! It will contain details from Breaking Dawn. Thanks for reading! Reviews, comments, grammar and spelling corrections, flames, questions, etc. are always welcome.


	2. Sister

Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight and/or Flight 29 Down.

SPOILER ALERT!! This chapter takes place immediately after Breaking Dawn.

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_Jacob was standing in the middle of a dense jungle. Supple leaves brushed against his naked torso as he walked slowing through the trees. He could feel the cool firm ground melt into soft sand beneath his bare feet as he pushed passed the fronds and stepped onto a beautiful beach. He blinked quickly and looked away as his eyes met the unrelenting force of a rising sun straight on. The light from the sun painted the ocean a golden orange. _

"_Gorgeous_ _isn't it?"asked a melodic voice._

_Jacob turned quickly to his right and saw a beautiful young woman staring serenely at the golden waves tugging sleepily at the sand. Her auburn curls shined like fire in the suns rays. Jacob gasped slightly._

"_Nessie?" he breathed in wonder reaching out a hand to touch her shoulder, her hair, any part of her just to know that she was real. Before he could touch her she took his hand in her own and kissed his fingertips. _

"_Nessie," he choked again. Her cheeks colored in pleasure and she brought his hand down to her side so that he could feel the slight curve of her hip on the back of his hand._

"_Hey there," Nessie greeted smiling widely so Jacob could see everyone of her perfect teeth. Jacob grinned back at her with a silly gaping smile. _

"_You grew up," he told her happily. She laughed, luscious brown eyes sparkling. Jacob laughed with her unable to tear his eyes away. "Has it been seven years?" he asked in joyful disbelief. Nessie shrugged and looked back at the ocean. Jacob followed her gaze, confused. "What are we doing here?" he asked. _

"_We're waiting," _

_Jacob glanced back at Reneesme in surprise. "We're waiting? For what?"_

"_We're missing someone" she told him, not taking her eyes off the skyline._

Before she could tell him who they were missing a great thunderclap brought him out of his dream and he was left staring uneasily at the dark ceiling of his bedroom. Rain pounded loudly against the roof. He strained to listen, trying to catch the sound of intruder sneaking outside of his father's house. He could only hear the storm raging outside. He took several deep calming breaths trying to slow his rapidly throbbing heart. He sat up wearily and grabbed the digital clock next to his bed. 2:34 am. Yeehah. He yawned hugely and rose silently as he could out of bed. His body ached from lack of sleep. The last couple of days, heck the last couple of months, had taken a toll out of him. But it was all worth it. All of the pain, fear, and utter anguish had been worth seeing this day. The day that had brought him Nessie, his own perfect and miraculous Nessie, the little girl that he loved. When he had first looked into her and eyes and felt the immense pull binding him to her, everything had snapped into place. Everything he had gone through with Bella, all the heartache, and every tortuous and exciting moment with the pack, Sam's and his own, had been in preparation of this day . He was made for her. He was made to love every unique inch of her.

Jacob made his way down the dark hall past his sister's room where he could hear her snoring peacefully and then carefully down the creaking stairs. His father's room was on the first floor and only his and the room Rachel had shared with their other sister was on the second floor.Well, there was a bathroom too, but usually the girls opted for the much larger one downstairs when they were home and Jacob got to have the upstairs bathroom to himself. He treaded softly into the kitchen, but before he could yank open the refridgerator door he froze in surprise. He turned and squinted into the darkness.

"Hey Jake," a familiar rough voice greeted him.

"Dad?" Jacob asked moving towards the kitchen table where his father was sitting motionlessly in his wheerchair.

"Yup," Billy confirmed. Jacob pulled a chair out from the table so he was sitting next to his father in the dark kitchen. Jacob stared at his father quizzically.

"Couldn't sleep," Billy answered Jacob's unspoken question. Jacob laughed slightly and slumped back into his chair.

"Yeah, me neither. After everything that has happened you'd think I wouldn't be able to fight sleep off, but..." Jacob trailed off waving a hand at the kitchen window where the rain still poured mercilessly on. Billy grunted and glanced at Jacob, then out the window and his hands, and then back at Jacob again. Jacob leaned forward in his seat.

"Dad? Are you okay? You're acting a little nervous," he asked hesitantly. It was unlike his father to be this edgy, especially since La Push and Forks were currently under no impending threat. Billy grimaced and shifted slightly in his wheelchair.

"Everythings fine. Today… or yesterday I suppose, I got some news," Billy told him staring at his hands again. Jacob waited for his father to continue. After a few seconds Billy looked up at his son again with a sort of surprised, wondering look on his face.

"You won't remember this, but a year or so after your mother died I started to see this…woman,"

Jacob struggled to keep himself from frowning. He didn't remember this but his sisters did and they all shared a general discomfort with the idea that their father was dating already a year after their mother had died. Apparently Billy didn't notice any change of countenance on Jacob's part because he kept going on with story now almost as if he had gained momentum and couldn't stop.

"I received a letter today from her executive of the estate. Apparently Jane, that was her name, Jane Wu, had died in a car crash a few weeks ago. Her … daughter had gone missing just a few days before her death. It was a class trip. She had gone on a class trip to some island and the plane crashed. They just found out the day before yesterday that the class was alive and that they were going to be able to bring them home. Of course, the girl… Melissa. She doesn't have a home now,".

Jacob stared at his father in absolute confusion. What was he talking about? This was all sad of course but what did this have to do with them? Why did the executive need to contact Billy. Suddenly it hit him. The realization almost knocked the wind out of him and jumped quickly out of his chair.

"No," he muttered staring aghast at his father. Billy looked up at him pleadingly and Jacob was shocked to see that his father's eyes were full. "No," Jacob said again a little more forcefully shaking his head in disgust.

"My name was on the birth certificate," Billy stated. Jacob pushed the chair out of the way with a satisfying screech and started to pace the linoleum floor. "Jane had written a letter to me… explaining why she didn't… why she didn't tell me about her. The letter was just in case something happened to Jane," Billy continued on. Jacob stopped pacing abruptly.

"And what? Your just going to believe her? You are just going to accept that this woman's kid is your daughter?" he demanded, voice getting louder and louder.

"Jacob please," Billy pleaded quietly starting to maneuver his wheel chair over to him. Jacob held up up a hand. Anger had taken a hold of him and couldn't stop himself from shaking.

"How could you?" Jacob seethed before turning quickly on his heel out the door into the storm where he could escape into the roar of the rain. Jacob shifted quickly unable to stay human in this state of rage. He ran blindly away from the house deeper and deeper into the forrest. The frigid rain seeped through his thick coat but he pounded on. How could he? How could Billy do this to him? To his mom? To their family? His mind buzzed with all the angry thoughts. Especially now, when everything finally seemed settled between Bella and he and Nessie was perfect, healthy, and safe. She would grow up, but her rapid aging would slow. Everything was supposed to be fine now and now this!

Jacob kept running until he couldn't feel anything else but the adrenaline and high of running at incredible speeds, a power to behold, unstopple, an Alpa wolf, direct descendent of Ephraim Black. He let his primal instincts take over and any thought of what was waiting for him back home faded away. He ran circles around La Push. Even in his crazed state he knew he didn't want to be too far from her, from Nessie. He ran until the rain calmed and gradually stopped. He ran until the sun started to rise casting the forest in an amber glow. Something about the way the light hit the morning dew clinging to Fork's forest's branches made him remember the dream. The wonderful dream where Reneesme came to him and they stood to together on a strange and beautiful island bathed in a goldish-orange glow. Thinking of her know, how perfect she was, how remarkable, and the joy that came from seeing her as his equal made him slow his gait. What had she told him in the dream? They had to wait for someone. Jacob halted all together. Was it possible that he had sensed this? That somehow the Ephraim Black in his blood made him aware of a missing link in their family? Jacob let out a frustrated huff. He was going to have to accept this wasn't he? Jacob started pacing anxiously in the wet grass. But what would this mean? How would this change his life? Jacob snorted and rolled his eyes to himself. Hadn't he got through enough change to be more than ready to deal with anything at this point? He was going to have to deal with this. And he would. He just wouldn't like it, that's all. Jacob started running again, this time back to his father's house and back to Billy.

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"Wow," Bella whispered in her newly acquired sing-song voice. She awas sitting comfortably on the Cullen's pristine couch with Nessie sitting quietly in her lap. Mother and daughter had paid strict attention to Jacob's retelling of the night before, everything but the dream of course. He wasn't sure how Bella would react to him dreaming of Nessie in her grown up state. Edward, he was sure, would be livid when he heard the dream in his thoughts. But hopefully Jacob would be able to guard it from him for a while longer. Although he detested the blood-sucker's...Edward's invasive talent when used on him, he was acutely aware of its benefits especially it the middle of an attack. Bella's husband was out at the moment as well as most of her vampire family, that's why Jacob could talk so freely. Only Alice and Esme remained, but they were both out at Bella's cottage for the moment. Bella had grumbled something about a "surprise" regarding Reneesme's room. Despite everything that had changed about her, Bella still was uncomfortable with the exorbitant gift giving her adopted family was accustomed to.

"Holy Crow," Bella remarked again in astonishment while gently fingering one of Nessie's auburn curls. Jacob smirked and stretched on his end of the couch.

"Yeah," he grunted and held out his arms to Nessie who had started to crawl over to him. She placed her tiny hands on his cheeks and a rush of images whizzed through his mind. "Sure,sure," he said grinning and pulled her closer into a tight hug. She giggled and rolled her eyes. Bella shook her head at the two of them.

"What did you tell him Reneesme?" she asked. Nessie smiled mysteriously and fought her way out of Jacob's grasp to her mother. Jacob sighed theatrically at her depart.

"Oh she was just be bossy,"he teased. Nessie glanced over her shoulder at him and stuck out her tongue. Jacob smirked and and stretched out further until his feet were inches away from Bella's lap. Nessie scrunched her nose and patted her mother's shoulder. Bella smiled and shook her head.

"You tell him," she instructed. Nessie looked straight at him, brown eyes serious.

"Your feet stink," she said. Jacob laughed and wiggled his toes.

"I know! Aren't they glorious?"

Nessie shook her head furtively making her waist length curls swirl around her head. She swiftly pushed his feet off the white cushion. The push was so strong Jacob found himself straining his muscles so he wouldn't slip off the couch. Bella laughed anxiously. It always caught her off guard when her daughter exhibited any characteristics more attributed to her vampire side than her human. Jacob merely pulled himself straight on the couch and tucked his feet under him indian-style.

"Better?" Jacob asked waggling his eyebrows at Nessie. The little girl nodded but kept a suspicious eye on him, unsure if he woul continue to antogonize her or not. Bella frowned impatiently.

"So what did she tell you?" she asked. Jacob pulled a pained expression

"Oh, she said that I need to be NICE. She said that I'm lucky to have so many sisters." Bella had the grace to look a little disturbed by Nessie's last sentiment. She caught Jacob's eyes with her own blood red ones. Clearly, Nessie did not understand that she probably wouldn't get any sisters or brothers for that matter. Well, at least not the way Jacob had them. However, that discussion would have to wait to another day for Nessie had patted her mother again right over her heart. Bella winced. Jacob leaned forward anxiously.

"Thirsty?" Jacob asked.

"Yeah," Bella rasped slightly, her musical voice going down a few notes.

"When will Edward and Carlisle be back?"Bella glanced worriedly at the clock.

"Soon I hope," Bella answered gazing at Reneeme's face to see if she understood. Nessie's sulky pout showed she did. She would have to wait. Edward and Carlisle had gone to retrieve more donor blood. Even though the danger had seemingly passed, no one felt comfortable enough to let Nessie go hunting again. The little halfling had been overjoyed by this decision earlier, but now that she was so thirsty Jacob couldn't tell anymore. Bella shook off her worry and looked toward Jacob expectantly.

"So...?" she began.

"So what?"

"So, distract us! Tell us what happened after you went back home. Who else knows?" Bella demanded. Jacob sighed.

"Well Billy was happy to see me when I got back. Apparently Rachel had woken up not long after that and was understandably very upset. She had already fled to Paul which means he knows and which probably means that everyone in Sam's pack knows. Dad said that a friend of... Melissa's family is a lawyer and the executive of the estate. She will be bring her up here when they return to California. We don't know much more than that. The executive said she would call when she had more information. After that I slept for a couple hours and then came over here. I'm meeting up with Leah and the rest of the pack this evening, so I'll probably be retelling this story all over again." he told them.

Bella shook her head sadly. Jacob knew she was thinking of how it would be for Reneesme if she was gone. They had dealt with that very reality just yesterday. Jacob shuddered as he remembered how anguished both Bella and Nessie had looked when Bella had passed her daughter off to him to run. Before he could say anything regarding the subject Bella's immaculate face split into a dazzling smile.

"Edward's back," she said happily. Nessie turned in her mother's lap to gaze longingly at the door.

"Daddy," she murmured. Jacob suddenly remembered his previous objective of keeping the dream from Edward as long as possible.

"That's my cue! See you pretty ladies later!" He called as he bounded off the couch and out the door with both Bella and Nessie staring after him in confusion.

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Author's Note: Okay-dokey! The next two chapters will be posted next Friday. Chapter three will be in Melissa's point of view. Again, reviews, comments, flames, and grammar advice are always appreciated. See you next week! :)


	3. Misery

Disclaimer: I do not own Flight 29 Down. I do not own Twilight.

Spoiler Alert!: Hotel Tango! Hotel Tango! Oh, and some Breaking Dawn!

Authors Note: Hello! Thanks for all of my reviews! You guys rock! I've got some bad news though... due to my schedule I"m going to have to update only one chapter a week instead of two. However, as you can see they will be seriously bulked up. I don't know how many chapters now... the story has taken some twists and turns in my mind. This will be a Melissa/Jackson story! There will still probably be a sequel following this story directly called _**Waning Moon**_.

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So this was it. This was the massive and horrifying thing that had been hovering over her. Oddly enough she didn't feel a glimpse of fear nor a inkling of relief that the storm had finally broken over life. No, Melissa felt numb. She was utterly and completely numb. Even with Jackson beside her, his fingertips pressed lightly into the small of her back, she felt nothing. She just felt blank apathetic acceptance. Her mother was dead. Her mother had gotten into her beige sedan just days after they had crashed on the island and had been killed by a drunken driver who had crossed the double yellow line.

When she had stepped out of the terminal flanked by Jackson and Nathan with Lex just in front of her she suspected nothing. She didn't even think to check for her mother. She just assumed that she was out there probably with Nathan's parents lost in the throng of people and press who had come to see the survivors of Flight 29 Down. The terminal was bursting with noise and light. Camera flashes seared into her consciousness and she felt a strange emptiness as Nathan broke away from her and Lex followed Daley into the crowd of onlookers. Jackson was immediately taken aside by a burly looking man stuffed into a worn suit. Surprisingly Jackson grabbed her hand and pulled her with him. He glanced quickly at her and she could see the anxiety in his grey eyes. She squeezed his hand and followed. Melissa still couldn't get over the feeling of out right glee that filled her whenever Jackson did something that proved he had chosen her. On the plane, he had made sure that she was the one sitting next to him during the seemingly unending flight home. Unfortunately the man in the worn suit didn't want Melissa to partake in the conversation and asked her in a calm but still rather harsh voice to give him and Cody some privacy. She flinched at the man's use of Jackson's first name, but she nodded her head anyway. Melissa could see Jackson's jaw tighten and his lips twisting into an angry rebuke. She quickly placed a calming hand on his shoulder.

"It's fine. I'll wait until you're done. I'll just be over here," she told him motioning to the empty seats a few feet away from them. Jackson nodded and turned quickly back to the burly man, in a hurry to get their discussion over with. Melissa sighed and slowly made her way to the seats, taking a minute to look around her. She saw Abby grimacing as a dark haired man and woman took her in a gentle embrace. She saw Eric standing nervously next to a formidable well-dressed man who she immediately recognized as Eric's father. Melissa caught Eric's eye and they shared a friendly but slightly awkward smile. Eric's mother, a slight pale looking woman, was gripping Eric's arm tightly. Behind them Melissa could see Taylor and her father holding on to each other as Taylor chatted animatedly to one of the reporters. Melissa hadn't really spoken to Taylor since she and Jackson had come to an understanding, but Taylor had smiled at her from where Lex and she were sitting on the plane . Maybe there was hope for a friendship between the two of them after all.

Melissa frowned slightly to herself as she scanned the crowd. Where was her mother? Jane Wu had always been a bit of a scatterbrain, but Melissa seriously doubted her mother could forget to come and meet her daughter who had been missing for so many weeks. She breathed a sigh of relief, however, when she saw Mrs. McHugh come striding toward her. She would know where her mother was. Nathan's mother was a beautiful woman. With her contoured cheek bones, flawless skin, and light brown eyes that looked almost green in the right kind of light, Mrs. McHugh could have been a model at her six foot three height. However, Mrs. McHugh had chosen lawyer instead of model and right now her exquisite face was decidedly grim. Melissa waved at her in confusion. It seemed odd to her that Mrs. McHugh would be downcast especially seeing as she just welcomed her only son home.

"Mrs. McHugh..." Melissa managed to get out before Mrs. McHugh had grabbed her in a crushing hug. "What..." Melissa gasped in surprise. With a shock, she realized that she could feel her friend's mother shaking slightly as she held Melissa in her tight embrace.

"Melissa, oh honey... I'm afraid I have some terrible news," Mrs. McHugh told her, her voice thick with grief. Melissa felt herself stiffen and her heart started to ricochet up against her chest. She strained to see over Mrs. McHugh's shoulder. Nathan was staring at them in horror, tears streaming down his face. Mr. McHugh was holding him back whispering furtively into his ear.

"Oh God," Melissa choked out dryly. She pushed out of Mrs. Mchugh's grip and looked her straight in the eye.

"Where's my mother?" Melissa demanded ,almost growling. Mrs. McHugh didn't react to her violent tone. Instead she grabbed Melissa's shoulders.

"You mother was killed Melissa. She's gone, honey,"

At that moment, Melissa felt her body relinquish all feeling. She listened absently as Mrs. McHugh tearfully told her the details. She was only slightly aware of when Jackson came up behind her and demanded to know what was going on. It was Nathan who told him. His eyes were dry but red from crying and he never looked from Melissa when he spoke. Jackson groaned slightly in the back of his throat and she felt him gingerly place his fingers on the small of her back. Melissa barely registered this as well as the fact that the burly man who Jackson was talking a minute ago walked around them and started to talk earnestly with Nathan's father. She shook her head trying to clear it, but the fog held mercifully on. Eventually Mrs. McHugh realized that Melissa was overwhelmed and suggested that maybe they should go home. Melissa nodded slightly and let Jackson and Nathan support her as they walked through the mass of people to the parking garage.

The car ride passed in an instant. Nathan and his mother conversed quietly in the front seat while Jackson sat silently beside her. Briefly Melissa wondered where Mr. McHugh was and why Jackson was allowed to be there. Some reasonable part of her brain knew that the burly man should have taken him away, but the thoughts drained out of her head quickly. They had just pulled up into the McHugh's driveway and Melissa realized with a jolt that "home" no longer meant the tidy apartment she had shared with her mother. Now "home" was the McHugh's two story VVictorian. It was only then did she start to cry. It started quietly at first with the tears merely slipping down her cheeks, but by the time they had made it into the house and Melissa had pushed passed Jackson and Nathan up the stairs to the guest bedroom , the tears were coming out in racking sobs. She shut the door quickly, praying that Mrs. McHugh would have the decency to keep the boys at bay. Melissa collapsed onto the bed and let the obliterating sadness take over her completely. She cried and wailed into the pillow until she had nothing left and exhaustion swept her away into a fitful sleep.

When Melissa awoke the house was quiet. Night had fallen and she could see the same full moon that had haunted her on the island peeking through the shades of the McHugh's guest bedroom's window. Melissa's body was stiff with sleep and her eyes felt swollen from crying. She sat up slowly touching her tight neck gingerly. The light from the moon glimmered into the bedroom marking the dark with swoops of silver light. Melissa almost laughed when she saw Jackson and Nathan sprawled out on the floor with their respective sleeping bags, the same ones from the island, Nathan snoring loudly. Melissa smiled sadly to herself. They were such good friends. Jackson was sleeping soundly despite Nathan's obnoxious snores. Melissa guessed that he had gotten used to it on the island. The island...that night was the first night she had slept away from it. It was also the first night Melissa hadn't dreamt of the wolves. Instead she had dreamt of their island. It was a strangely beautiful dream. The sun was rising over the ocean and everything was cast in an orange-gold light. The waves lapping the beach seemed oddly peaceful and Melissa had felt completely content to stay there forever. She sighed and laid back down, aware that her pillow was still damp from the afternoon's tears. Nathan twitched in his sleep and his snores stopped completely for a few seconds before starting up again full force. Jackson slept peacefully on. Melissa closed her eyes and imagined their island from her dreams again anxious to be back in that amber light.

It was early afternoon when Melissa awoke again. Nathan and Jackson had already left the guest bedroom and she could see their sleeping bags shoved up against the opposite wall. _Boys_ Melissa thought to herself before rising out of bed. Her entire body felt disjointed. It no longer felt stiff but rather like it had been dissembled and then put back together again with unsure hands. She felt slightly unsteady as she walked over to the discarded sleeping bags and started to spread them out and fold them nicely. They smelled horrible, but oddly comforting. Melissa couldn't help but recall sleeping in the lone tent with everyone fondly, Eric's stinky feet and all. Suddenly Melissa's ears were alerted to Nathan's voice raised in indignation.

"I don't understand why she can't stay here!" Nathan shouted. Melissa dropped the sleeping bag she was folding, green, _Jackson's_ she thought, and moved toward the door. She opened it carefully so she could better hear the goings on in the McHugh's kitchen.

"It doesnt make any sense. You guys are foster parents..." Jackson said angrily.

"Yeah! You're a lawyer! Dad's a social worker!" Nathan interjected.

"Right, you figured out how I could stay here while working off my sentence. Why can't you do that with Melissa?"Jackson demanded.

"Boys please! You'll wake her up!" Mrs. McHugh whispered anxiously before Mr. McHugh's deep baritone broke in.

"It just doesn't work like that. I'm sorry guys, but since Melissa's mom left her in the care of her father in the will Melissa would only be able to be entered into the foster care system if he doesn't want her. But..."

"He wants her," Jackson finished stonily. Nathan let out a exasperated groan.

"But Melissa hasn't even met this guy! She knows nothing about him! He may not even be her father!" Nathan argued outraged.

"Nathan, as the executive of Jane's estate I am obligated to follow her wishes as laid out in her will. This means delivering Melissa to William Black in Forks, Washington. His name is on the birth certificate and pending any DNA testing he is legally considered the father. Especially since he is willing to accept her into his care." Mrs. McHugh explained wearily.

"How soon," Jackson asked in the same stone voice as before. Mrs. McHugh sighed.

"Tomorrow," she told him sadly.

Melissa had heard enough. She slammed the guest room door loudly and stomped into the bathroom. She thrust the sprocket open and waited until the water was scorching hot before shedding her clothes and jumping under the shower's forceful stream. She let the boiling water scald her as she cried once more, angry that she had no choice in the matter and angry that her mother had died and left her to this stranger. She was sad too. She was sad that she would have to leave again. She was sad that she had to leave her friends. She was sad that she would have to leave Jackson, but most of all she was sad because she would have to leave the place that held the most memories of her mother.

By the time the hot water started to run out, Melissa had resigned herself to what was coming. She carefully stepped out of the shower so as not to slip and dried herself quickly with one of the yellow guest towels. Mrs. McHugh had thoughtfully stocked the bathroom with all necessary toiletries before her arrival. However, now that she thought about it, they were probably for Jackson as well. She shook her head in wonderment as she pulled on the large fluffy bathrobe and tied it tightly around her naked self. She and Nathan had talked briefly about how to help Jackson on the island when it was just the two of them. Melissa was amazed and grateful that her friend had taken it upon himself to make sure Jackson was alright.

She stared at herself in the mirror running her fingers through her long black hair. It was almost as if she was looking at a stranger. Melissa had never been a "skinny" girl. She had always been slightly more husky then the rest of her female classmates and had always had a rounder face and thicker torso. Melissa had never really been bothered by this, she had just attributed her different body type to her genetics. Now, Melissa could see how much she had changed on the island. She not only looked like she had lost weight, but she looked leaner, more muscular. Her body was all angles and her face showed it most of all. The roundness was gone and Melissa marveled at the sharpness of her cheekbones and the definite outline of her jaw. Her skin was darker too. Most likely the sun on the island had turned her normally ivory colored skin to a more tawny tone. Melissa sighed. She was going to have to face the world sooner or later. If what Mrs. McHugh said was true, she only had so much time left here and she didn't want to waste it staring at herself in the mirror.

Melissa jumped slightly when she opened the bathroom door into the guest bedroom and saw Jackson sitting hunched over on the bed next to a tray laden with a glass of milk, two delicious looking cinnamon roles, and a singular aspirin.

"Hey," Melissa croaked slightly from the doorway. Jackson looked up startled. She saw his gaze focus on her right shoulder where the much too large bathrobe had slipped revealing naked skin. She fixed it quickly and caught Jackson still staring. Suddenly Melissa realized she wasn't wearing anything under the robe and a sudden heat swept through her. Jackson must have been thinking the same thing because he coloured and looked away quickly.

"Hey," he said awkwardly to his hands. Melissa moved to sit next to the tray on the bed. The cinnamon rolls smelled fantastic and Melissa couldn't help but tear a piece off and pop it into her mouth. It tasted wonderful too. She moaned slightly as she savored the frosting and the long missed saturated fat of the roll. Jackson looked cautiously over at her and smiled.

"Good, huh?" he asked. Melissa nodded emphatically.

"Are you kidding me? This is REAL food!" she exclaimed taking another generous bite. Jackson nodded and looked sheepish.

"I know. I've already had about five. Nathan topped me though. I think he managed to scarf down seven before Mrs. McHugh whisked them away. You're lucky you got two,"

Melissa laughed through a mouthful of cinnamon roll. She pointed to the aspirin questioningly. Jackson looked embarrassed again.

"Oh, Mrs. McHugh thought that maybe you were coming down with something. She said last afternoon you felt ...hot," he muttered. Melissa couldn't help herself, she snorted loudly putting a hand up in front of her mouth to keep food from flying out. Jackson looked at her oddly before joining in with her laughter too. Melissa shrugged and chased the cinnamon roll down wit the aspirin and a couple swigs of milk. She didn't feel sick. In fact she felt a fraction better sitting there laughing with Jackson, but it couldn't hurt. Melissa didn't know what she would do if she got sick in addition to the hell she was already going through.

"So, uh, I guess you heard all of that?" Jackson asked hesitantly after their laughter had died down. Melissa sighed, feeling the weight of her situation crashing down on her again.

"Yeah,"

"I didn't even know..." Jackson began again looking at her seriously. Melissa shrugged again and lifted the tray off the bed and onto the floor so she could sit next to him.

"How would you? I didn't tell you and it's such old news barely anyone at Hartwell knew," Melissa told him. Jackson's brow furrowed.

"Do you want to live with him?" he asked brusquely, almost as if he was afraid of the answer. Melissa twisted around so she could see his face better. His eyes were contemplative.

"Jackson," she said. He didn't move. "Jackson, look at me," she commanded. Jackson turned his head slightly so his grey eyes met her own. "Of course not. I don't want to go to... Oregon or Washington or wherever and live with a complete stranger! I don't want to leave my town, and my friends. Jackson I don't want to leave you. I'm sorry I won't be here... I'm sorry..." she told him earnestly, afraid that she might start crying again. Before she could finish Jackson seized her head with his hands.

"No. I'm sorry. I'm sorry about you mom Mel," he told her sternly, tone indicating that she should stop apologizing.

"Thanks,"

"And it doesn't matter. Due to some ironic twist of fate, I am now Nathan's foster brother. Apparently you too came up with the idea back on the island and Nathan called his parents as soon as he could get his hands on a phone. Which is kind of accomplishment in itself, seeing we were banned from calling anyone until we reached the airport... that evil looking dude from terminal? Yeah, he was my social worker before the trip. He was only there to transfer me to Mr. McHugh's care and tell me that I was cleared from the assault charges, someone had the guts to tell him what really happened. But I still violated my probation and I am now stuck with a butt-load of community service. Thankfully I get to work off my sentence living here and not in some group home," Jackson rambled looking at the ceiling with his hands still firmly placed on her head.

"Wow," Melissa muttered.

"What?" Jackson asked looking back down at her.

"That's the most I have ever heard you say," she whispered. Jackson rolled his eyes.

"Shut up," he teased. He leaned forward and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead. "I'll visit," he said firmly, lips still hovering above her forehead. Melissa closed her eyes.

"You'll visit," she said back to him, knowing that without a doubt he would.

* * *

Author's Note: Yippee! End of chapter three! Next Friday, September 19, 2008 I will post chapter four featuring Jacob's point of view! How will the pack react to the news? Will Edward rip Jacob a new one when he finds out about Jacob's dream? What will Jacob's first meeting with his newly rescued half-sister be like? Tune in next week for more Flight 29 Down/ Twilight goodness! As always... reviews are welcome! :)


	4. Unknown

Disclaimer: I never will own Twilight or Flight 29 Down. It's so sad!

Author's Note: I'm sorry that the updates are taking so long! Life keeps interfering with fanfiction! ACK! Also, thanks so much for all of your reviews! Here we go back to La Push . . .

* * *

Jacob seriously thought he was losing his mind. It was morning again in La Push and he was on his way to update the Cullens and relieve Leah. Everything was moving so fast. The lawyer lady had called Billy while Jacob was visiting with Bella and Nessie yesterday. The girl would be in La Push late the following day. Jacob had been up most of the night making the "guest room" livable.

The guest room as it turned out was the attic of the Black's house. No one had been up there for ages and Jacob had pretty much forgot it even existed. When Billy had first suggested it, Jacob had fought to have the girl stay in Rebecca's room. He knew he would end up being the one doing all the work, especially since Rachel had been outright hostile about the whole situation. She refused to even recognize that this girl could be her half-sister. She was absolutely livid and refused to speak to Billy. She spent most of her time at Paul's. Both Billy and Rachel had shot down his suggestion right away. Rachel because"that room belonged to her _**sister**_," and Billy because some mumbo-jumbo about how the girl would need her own space. Jacob was pretty sure his dad was just repeating what Sue Clearwater had told him, but he went along with it anyway. Partly he followed his dad's lead because Billy seemed so… happy about this. Jacob had often caught him staring whimsically out the window in the past day or so, which was both annoying and gratifying. Jacob knew he had put his father through the wringer when he took off before Bella's wedding and again when he split from Sam's pack. Now that Billy's long lost daughter was coming the wrinkles that had formed on his already weathered face from worrying about Jacob seemed to smooth out and Billy seemed full of energy.

Most of the pack already knew about the newest Black scandal by time Jacob had retold the story. All of them were shocked, even more so to learn she was coming in two days time. Behind the initial surprise, Jacob could pick up varying feelings from each member of the pack. Seth was annoyingly estatic about the whole situation. He was overjoyed that someone in La Push would be the same age as him. Leah feigned indifference but her consciousness was also tinted with curiosity. Embry had some relief in the knowledge that he wasn't the only love child produced in Forks and Quil, he was just amused. It was all Jacob could do to keep them on track. They were filled with questions and speculations and therefore so was he.

"_How long will she stay here?"**Seth**_

_"Do we have to be nice to her?' **Leah**_

_"Is she hot?" **Embry**_

_"How will we keep the pack a secret from her?" **Quil**_

_"Wait... we WILL have to keep the secret from her right?" **Leah**_

_"Depends if somebody imprints on her," **Embry**_

_"Or she is another female wolf," **Quil**_

_""Is she hot?" **Seth**_

Leah growled and swiped at her little brother. Seth whimpered and rubbed his nose.

"_Ow_," he muttered.

" _Baby_," Leah cajoled. Seth glared at her in annoyance.

Jacob circled the pack and huffed in frustration.

_"Look, I understand you all have questions. We just don't have time to address them all right now. Quil is right though. We will have to plan on how best to keep the pack a secret from her,"_

_"Right,"_Quil grunted in agreement. Embry and Leah nodded their heads. Seth merely stared into the darkness.

_"Seth? You with us?"_ Jacob asked.

_"Vampire,"_Seth said simply. The entire pack tensed waiting for Jacob to tell them what to do next. Jacob inhaled deeply. Yes, he smelled it now. Seth had proved to have one hell of a snout on him, not to mention those insanely accurate ears.

_"Thank you,"_Seth responded cheerfully. Seth had relaxed out of his predatory posture and was wearing a wolfy grin. The rest of the pack was still waiting.

_"It's okay. It's a Cullen,"_ Jacob told them.

_"Alice,"_ Seth clarified. Jacob nodded grudgingly. Damn that nose! Seth's grin got wider. Everyone except Jacob and Seth remained tense. Seth rolled his eyes at his pack-mates.

_"Wonder what she wants..."_ Seth began before Alice herself appeared. Her luminescent skin glinted in the star light as she danced into the circle. She didn't wait for them to phase before she began talking at lightening speed.

"Hey there pups! I'm in a hurry, but I just got back from hunting with Esme...she went ahead obviously. Anyway... there is some residual upset over the Volturi's last visit if you can imagine. Some far fetched plans of revenge being considered, but nothing serious. Almost daydreams I guess. But I thought I would tell you since Edward would probably find out soon as I get back and throw a hissy fit and then he would tell you and you would throw an even bigger hissy fit. So, it maybe a good idea to have somebody patrol until the Volturi face reality and stop with the imaginings. Okay? Gotta go bye!" Alice rambled before sprinting off into the forest and was gone before Jacob could react. The pack erupted into pandemonium once more.

_"Pups?"_ Leah growled.

_"Hissy fit?"_Embry wondered in astonishment.

_"I'm not going. I'm babysitting Claire__ tomorrow morning,"_Quil said defiantly.

_"I'll go!"_ Seth volunteered.

_"Course you would,"_ Leah snapped.

_"Hissy fit?"_ Embry asked again.

_"SHUT-UP!"_Jacob snarled pounding his paws to get their attention. They stopped and stared at him obediently.

_"I need to think!"_he told them. He started to pace around the pack again. Anxiety immediately assaulted him. He needed to keep Reneesme safe. Alice hadn't seemed particularly worried and he had come to trust her judgements about her visions. However, the fear for Nessie's safety wouldn't let him trust her completely. Alice was right. He would feel better if the pack kept patrol around the Cullen's house. He would go right after this. It would give him a chance to see Nessie again today and... crap. Billy had just about threatened bodily damage if he didn't come home right after the pack meeting to start cleaning out the attic.

Seth raised a paw hesitantly, looking much like a student anxious for his teacher to call on him. Jacob sighed and Seth did a little victory dance.

_"Fine,"_ he acknowledged, _"But there is no way you are doing it all night. Your mom would bust my chops,"_

_"But I can do it!"_ Seth whined.

_"I'll do it,"_ Leah volunteered. Jacob and the rest of the pack stared at her in disbelief. Leah rolled her eyes.

_"What? I'm just picking up the slack for my little brother,"_she said defensively. Seth let out an impudent growl. Leah barked in what was the wolf's version of laughter and cocked her head. _"Plus I have a feeling that if I stay home long enough, mom will make me go over and help you clean that moldy attic out,"_ Leah amended. Jacob couldn't help but laugh too. He nodded, shaking his shaggy mane.

_"Fine, that's settled. I will relieve you in the morning. Now let's get this meeting over with,"_ Jacob said.

_"Here, here!"_Quil cheered.

Thankfully the meeting went smoothly after Alice's slightly jarring announcement. Embry and Quil had departed quickly and when Seth had dashed off eagerly to the Cullen's Jacob thought Leah would head on home. Instead she sat motionlessly staring at Jacob with contemplative eyes. Jacob grew irritated with her.

_"What Leah? I've got to go. If you are backing out of your shift, then just tell me,"_ He sniped at her turning to leave. Leah stood up quickly.

_"No! That's not it! I just want to talk!"_ she cried in his head. Jacob halted and huffed.

_"Alright. Run home with me,"_ he told her and bolted ahead through the trees.

She said nothing but Jacob could hear her racing behind him. Jacob knew she could easily move in front but from the emotions her mind was evoking, he also knew she was slightly embarrassed. They continued to run silently for a few seconds giving Leah time to build up her courage.

_"So you're okay with this?"_ She asked tentatively. Jacob caught on to her train of thought quickly.

_"Well, yeah. I kind of have to be. Really, I shouldn't be judging anybody and yeah, I was pretty pissed at first. Rachel still is..." _he began. An image of his older sister's normally lovely face hardened into hatred with her full mouth gaping ready to yell in anger and protest flashed through his brain.

_"Yeesh. Not her best look,"_Leah commented gaining speed until she was neck and neck with Jacob.

_"Yeah, but like I said who am I to judge. I'm the renegade alpha wolf who imprinted on a half-human, half-vampire child of my best friend and former love of my life. Plus Billy is pretty happy about it,"_ Jacob continued. Leah snorted.

_"No kidding. He's gotten over the whole my-best-friend-stole-my-girl thing pretty quickly. And yeah, I'm no one to judge either. The whole pining over my former pack leader and acting like a bitch to everyone who came in contact with me kind of killed that chance,"_

Jacob grimaced, though whether it ws over Leah mentioning Sam, the idea that his fatherhad been interested in Leah's mom, or that Mrs. ClearWater was dating Chief Swann, he wasn't sure.

_"Yeah, major yuck on the last one,"_Leah said wryly.

_"Oh come on, Chief Swann isn't a bad guy,"_

_"I suppose. But I was rooting for the other guy,"_

Jacob stopped running immediately and it took Leah several seconds to realize this and trot back to him. He could tell she was embarrassed again.

_"Course I'm embarrased. I'm about to be all mushy"_ Leah snapped.

_"What?"_ Jacob asked confused.

_"Sorry. I shouldn't have snapped."_ Leah mumbled. Jacob shook his head.

_"No, the other thing. The thing about rooting for the other guy,"_

Leah pawed the ground absently._ "Well, I don't know. It would have been cool to have you as a brother I guess,"_

Jacob took a step back, startled.

_"You know... so Seth would have a good role model and stop being such a softy about the vamps. Well actually you may not be the best role model for that"_she continued on.

_"Sure, sure,"_ Jacob muttered. Leah glared at him.

_"I'm serious!"_ she insisted. Jacob looked at her carefully. Her grey muzzle wasn't pulled into a sneer nor was her head cocked in her normally teasing fashion.

_"Well, I guess you would have been a cool sister too, Leah. And it would have been nice to have a little brother even if Seth is a bit addle brained."_

Leah barked a laugh.

_"I'll tell him you said so,"_ she promised. Even though she was laughing Jacob still sensed something stirring anxiously in her mind. He almost gasped in astonishment at what he found. Thankfully, he had the good sense not too.

_"Leah! She won't replace you. You are my second in command and damn good one at that. And to be equally mushy you've been a really good friend to me,"_

_"Thanks, but she is your sister,"_

_"Whom I've never met,"_

_"And what if she..."_

_"Is a werewolf? First of all, that still wouldn't change anything and second of all she is only half Quileute. I think you've cornered the market on freaky female werewolves... no offense,"_

Leah barked another laugh and shook her sleek head, annoyed with herself.

"_Argh! Enough of this! Race you home!"_Leah challenged before sprinting off.

Jacob huffed and followed straining his muscles to keep up with her. As soon as Jacob had entered his father's house, exhausted and still anxious about Alice's warnings, Billy who seemed outright manic, put him to work hauling the junk out of the attic and cleaning the dust and spiderwebs out of every nook. Jacob was surprised to find a small triangular window that looked out into the forest. By time he was finished he was almost dead on his feet and collapsed onto the small twin bed that he had put together hours before. When he had left the house Sue Clearwater had come busting through the door followed closely by Chief Swann. Both adults were carrying boxes stuffed with an assortment of girly items. Jacob assumed that they were hand-me-downs from Leah and Bella.

"Hey Charlie," Jacob greeted him sleepily, grabbing a banana and shoving it into his mouth. Charlie winced slightly, still uncomfortable around him.

"He Jake," he grunted and moved around him to the foot of the attic stairs where Billy had positioned himself and was giving directions. Jacob turned his attention back to Mrs. Clearwater and found her staring at him intently with flinty eyes.

"Thank you for not keeping my son out all night," she told him seriously. Jacob swallowed his banana quickly and waved a dismissing hand at her.

"Not a problem. I'm sorry about keeping Leah out all hours though,"

"Doesn't matter. She is doing much better now that she is with you," Mrs. Clearwater responded. Jacob blushed slightly remembering he and Leah's conversation from last night. Sue Clearwater considered him carefully.

"It is important that Seth gets enough sleep. He is a growing boy and he will be starting school up again soon," she told him. Jacob shifted his weight from foot to foot. "When will you be going back? Don't you want to graduate this year?" she asked. Jacob groaned inwardly. He was sure that his education was a popular topic among the adults. He did want to continue his education, mainly because he wanted to make sure he could support Nessie. Jacob kew that the Cullens had more than enough money to keep her in comfort for many years but Jacob wanted to help support her on his own. Still, he didn't want to talk about it with Leah's mom either. He made a big show of looking at the clock and being surprised.

"Wow! It's almost eight-thirty! Leah's going to kill me" he cried bolting out the door and shifting as soon as he was immersed in the forest's branches.

So it was only after a few hours sleep he was now making his way to the Cullens still tired, famished, and apprehensive. Really, he was going crazy. He sighed to himself. At least he got to see Nessie. Being around her would ease the more human weaknesses wreaking havoc on his mental state. Who knew that this girl, his half-sister, Melody... or was it Melonie? Not Maddy certainly...

_"Melissa!"_ Leah growled in his head. Right. Melissa.

_"Good morning to you too Leah,"_ Jacob teased. He couldn't see her yet nor could his sensitive ears pick-up her light tread.

_"Whatever...I'm going to take another pass while you hob-nob with the blood-suckers,"_

"_Fine, let me know when you leave. Howl once, alright? No need to alarm anyone unnecessarily,"_

_"Yes sir, Mr. Alpha"_ Leah teased him back before going silent again focusing on her task. Jacob could still sense some embarrassment surrounding Leah's mind but he didn't dwell on it. He didn't want to alert Leah that he was onto her.

Even though it was only eight or so in the morning the sun was out in full force, unusual for Forks. Jacob shifted into his human form quickly still within the circumference of the trees. He untied the shorts around his leg and slipped them on. Nudity was not an option no matter how hot it was outside. Jacob trudged up to the house stomach rumbling as he caught a whiff of Edward's gooey cinnamon rolls mixed in with the icy vampire smell. The exterior of the Cullen house was quiet. No bloodsuckers out today because of the sun. Jacob could hear them moving around inside and could even hear Edward tell Esme that he was there.

"Oh, well I'll get a plate for him. I hope he's hungry," Esme said softly. Jacob rolled his eyes. He couldn't get over how maternal she was. Who'd ever thought that a vampire would be mothering a werewolf?

Edward laughed.

"What?" chorused a symphony of vampire voices. Esme for sure, Bella too, and Nessie? She must be out of touching distance. Either that or she had gotten over her dislike of speaking.

"Not likely," Edward said in aside to Jacob. Bella sighed in frustration.

"Sorry love. Jacob appreciates Esme's mothering is all," Edward told the girls soothingly. Jacob reached for the ornate handle to open the front door, but it swung open before his hand even made contact. Nessie stood impatiently in the door way, her small foot tapping and her arms crossed across her chest. The sun peeking in through the door lit up her skin and make her auburn hair sparkle.

"Hey there baby girl!" he greeted her holding out his arms. She chewed her lip in consternation, unsure if hugging him would give the impression that she wasn't angry at him, when in fact she was. Jacob waggled his eyebrows at her and she smiled beatifically. Any irritation she had toward him was overshadowed by her delight in seeing him. She jumped into his arms immediately assaulting him with images. She was angry that he did not come again last night like he promised. Mommy and Daddy were very worried about the the strangers who had come earlier to split their family apart and she had wanted him wither her. Jacob hoisted her higher on his hip, all the time aware of how much she had grown in the last couple of days. Her legs dangled easily to his knees and although it made no difference to him, he could feel that her weight had increased.

"I'm sorry Nessie. I really wanted to, but I had to get ready for my sister to come. Seth and Leah were here all night though making sure you were safe," he told her earnestly walking into the kitchen where the rest of the Cullens were gathered. A plate of cinnamon rolls sat beckoningly on the white marble island. Jacob walked over to it and placed Nessie delicately on the island. She sat staring happily at him, her legs swinging.

"Hey guys," Jacob said greeting Bella and her husband. He picked up one of the rolls and nodded a thanks to Esme. She smiled widely at him and glided to the refrigerator to pull out a crystal pitcher of milk. He eyed Bell and Edward suspiciously as he took a bite of one of the cinnamon rolls. They seemed reasonably calm. Had Alice seen the Volturi give up on their plans for revenge?

Edward shook his head. "No, they are still plotting away. But I feel quite confident that they are just what Alice described them to be, daydreams,"

Bella snorted. "Daydreams or not, I don't want them even thinking about Reneesme! You agreed with me last night!" she complained swatting Edward playfully on the shoulder. Edward rolled his eyes at her.

"Of course I'm still worried..." Edward began before a singular howl interrupted him from outside the house. Jacob sighed. He really didn't want to part with the cinnamon rolls, but keeping Nessie safe outranked his stomach.

"Leah's going home. I better get out there," Jacob said wiping his hands on his shorts. Nessie made a little whimper and patted his naked torso. She didn't want him to go yet. Jacob glanced at her angelic face and saw for a moment the young woman in his dream. He reached out to touch a curl that had shown gold in the rising sun of his dream island. Before Jacob could stop himself he was remembering every detail of the dream in his head.

"Crap," he muttered when he realized what he was doing and snapped his head up to look at Edward. Bella's husband had gotten very still. His eyes were narrowed and a snarl was frozen in place on his face. Jacob held up his hands in protest.

"Hey now," he said. Edward growled softly and Bella placed a calming hand on his chest. Jacob could feel the air move against his bare skin as Esme moved quickly and pulled Nessie into her arms.

"It's not bad! Really, its not!" Jacob insisted, hoping Edward would calm himself enough to understand the true meaning behind the dream, at least what the dream meant for him.

"What's going on?" Bella demanded, looking back and forth between Edward and Jacob.

"We'll talk about it later," Edward said harshly between his teeth. "Seth is outside,"

As soon as Edward announced Seth's arrival, there was an outburst of howling from outside the Cullen's house. Jacob swallowed quickly and nodded at Edward in acknowledgement. He quickly waved good-bye to Nessie who was still in Esme's arms and burst out the front door where he shifted quickly. Seth came running across the front lawn, letting out an excited howl every couple of seconds.

_"Seth shut up! I'm out here! What the hell is going on?"_ he demanded. Seth scooted to a stop, kicking up a couple of piles of grass in the process. Jacob could faintly here Esme sigh inside.

"Jacob! Dude! Wow! You won't believe this!" Seth cried in Jacob's mind while prancing in place.

_"Seth! Calm down! You're messing up the lawn! What is going on?"_

Seth stopped prancing immediately and looked sheepishly down at the ground.

_"Oh oops! Sorry!,"_

_"Seth..."_Jacob snarled.

_"Oh! Sorry! Yeah, your sister is here early, man!"_

_"What?!"_

_"Yeah, and that's not all! I was over at your house helping my mom and I got to meet her!"_Seth cried starting to wiggle in excitement again.

_"Seth!"_ Jacob cried in frustration. Seth stopped moving instantly and looked Jacob in the eye.

_"Jacob, man, I shook her hand. Her skin was **boil-ing!**"_

Jacob heard a sharp intake of air coming from inside the Cullen's house. When Jacob didn't react, Seth crept carefully toward him.

_"Jake?"_he asked cautiously.

_"HOLY CROW!"_ Jacob yelled and burst into motion. He sprinted across the lawn and into the forest.

_"I'll take over patrol!"_ Seth called after him, but Jacob didnt' answer. Did this mean... his half-sister... a werewolf? Jacob sped up, the muscles of his limbs burning. There was no way. Was there? There was only one way to find out...

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Author's Note: Finally! An update! Sorry again, guys! Review if you wish . . . :)


	5. Choices

Disclaimer: I do not own Flight 29 Down. I do not own Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, or Breaking Dawn (or Midnight Sun if Ms. Meyers ever deigns to release it :) )

Author's Note: Yay for your reviews! They make me quite happy. Hopefully this chapter answers some questions regarding Melissa's decision to not fight to stay at Hartwell. Also, there will be no more scheduled updates. I will post the chapters as I get them completed. Thanks and enjoy!

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Looking back, Melissa had no idea how she had made it through those first couple of days. A cloud of numbness had settled upon her, dulling her senses and keeping her from feeling the brunt of the turmoil. Yes, she had felt excruciatingly sad and angry, but the feelings didn't seem to stick. They seemed to slip off of her like rain drops on a cold stone statue. Nothing really reached her internally.

Melissa was thankful for the fog surrounding her. She knew if she had really allowed herself to feel the anguish, rage, andfear that came from coming home again after spending a month on a lost islandto find that her mother was gone forever from her life and that she was beinguprooted to another state to live with some man that was thought to be her father, she probably would have died. Melissa's soft and compassionate heart would have given out under the strain of all these impossible emotions and she would have perished on the floor of that airport. However, something inside her had been preparing her for weeks now. The dreams of the wolves and the rich green forest they ran in had been readying her spirit for something catastrophic. Something more catastrophic than being stranded on an island, much more so than any ordeal she had to go through trying to survive there.

They expected her to lose it. Sure, she had spent hours crying and had yelled a few times too. They expected her to dig her feet in and refuse to move, to refuse to just get up and leave her home that she had just got back to. But all she did was cry a few tears and sullenly obey. Jackson had said that it was okay. It was okay that she was leaving. She wasn't fooled. She could tell that he was confused. He had witnessed a few temper tantrums on the island and she knew that he expected one now, especially when she had promised him most fervently that she she would be there for him. Really, she was still amazed that he was even with her. She was amazed that he was helping her pack her things and taking turns answering the phone with Nathan to tell her friends "thank you" and "I'll tell her" and "Not right now, okay? She doesn't want to see anyone right now". She was amazed that he chose to camp out on the guest bedroom's wooden floor instead of sleeping on the couch. She was amazed that even though it was clear, despite their promises of visits to each other, she could not be there for him the way she had promised and the way he needed, he still decided to sneak her an extra cinnamon roll at three in the morning when she was starving and couldn't sleep.Jackson was doing his best. He was putting everything aside, all of his worries, thoughts, and frustrations to give her what she wanted, to be with him for those last few hours. He had been with her and she was grateful for it.

As she lay quietly on the bed listening to Jackson breath on the floor next to her, she couldn't help but face the truth. She would have to leave. In a few hours she and Mrs. McHughwould pile the few belongings Melissa had decided to take into the SUV and begin the long trip. They would drive. Nathan's mother thought it best not to take a plane considering the circumstances and Melissa had mutely agreed. Driving would lengthen the journey … making it two days instead of one… or perhaps longer. Melissa wasn't sure how to determine the travel time. She lay still, except for her forefinger and her thumb, which she rubbed together idly, feeling the stickiness left from the cinnamon roll she had earlier devoured. She had to leave and despite the passing anger, sadness, and regret she felt nothing. As she had done earlier in the shower, scalded from the heat, she resigned herself to this change. She was caught up in the winds of the storm and was too weak to fight it. The gales would take her where they desired and she had no choice but to shut her eyes and hope she landed on soft ground. She shifted on to her side and glanced out at the still full moon peeping in at her through the blinds. The familiarity of it seemed to solidify her fate within her mind. She had to leave. Why postpone the journey into two days when she could be in this new place in one? She really didn't mind the plane trip. Really, she had already crashed. What else could happen? No, it was better to get the transition over with, as quickly as possible.

Melissa rose silently out of bed and tiptoed over Jackson's sleeping form. She glanced over her shoulder wistfully. This, this is where the regret came from. Ever since she had first saw him standing in front of the sun looking scornfully down at the crowd, she had been struck by him. She wasn't sure why, but she saw something in him. Something in her soul connected with his and she pursued him eagerly, gently,and with quiet determination. Now that he had acknowledged her, she couldn't help but feel some remorse that this connection that had been forged on their island wouldn't be pursued. There was the beginning of something great between them, no matter how corny it sounded. But now, she was being ripped away. Fate was cruel. Why set something up that was filled with so much hope and possibility and then dash it away? She knew that after a few e-mails,a few texts, maybe a few calls if she was lucky, they would undeniably lose touch. He had promised to visit. She had promised to visit. But she knew. She knew that it would be easier for him to fill the gap she somehow managed to wedge in his heart with Taylor. Their connection seemed so much easier than hers and Jackson's. Trying to get to know him had been a struggle. One she happily undertook, but still a struggle. Taylor and Jackson seemed so natural together. They conversed easily and shared easily. Taylor depended on him and he thought she was honest. The jealousy that had once come with these thoughts was now a ghost to her.

Jackson had a home now, a safe and secure home, surrounded by friends. He could thrive there. He could be happy there. It seemed obvious to her that Taylor would fit beautifully into Jackson's new world. She resigned herself to it like everything else in her life. Jackson could be happy. Really, isn't that the best she could do for him? Let him be happy? She nodded to herself and left the bedroom. She crept down the stairs and logged on to the computer tucked into the corner of the dining room. Melissa chewed her lip as she gazed at the list of flights. Which one was the earliest? There, 9:00 am. Melissa leaned back in the desk chair, hearing it creak in the darkness.

"9:00 am" she whispered to herself.

The good-byes were quick and hurried. There was no time for tears. She managed to leave early enough to avoid seeing the others. She could barely take Jackson's and Nathan's broken faces let alone the others. Thankfully, the flight had gone by quickly. Melissa had fallen asleep soon after taking off. Something about the finality of lifting off into the sky away from her old home let her relax enough to drift off to sleep.

_Suddenly she was on the island again, but she couldn't focus her eyes in the morning light. Someone was standing down the beach looking out into the ocean. She tried to walk towards the figure but her feet remained still as if stuck in the wet sand._

_"Oh hello! We've been waiting for you," came an melodious voice behind her. Melissa whirled around, feet suddenly free. A young woman with a mane of reddish-brown curls and bright deep eyes smiled winningly at her._

_"Sister," the young woman said before reaching out to embrace Melissa._

"OH!" Melissa gasped as she wakened abruptly from the dream. Mrs. McHugh jumped slightly in her seat knocking a few legal documents off her lap in the process.

"Oh," Melissa said again leaning forward in her seat. Mrs. McHugh gently touched her shoulder.

"Melissa? Honey? Are you alright?"

Melissa quickly sat up straight and gave Mrs. McHugh a curt nod.

"Yeah, yeah. Sorry. Just a dream. Sorry" she apologized in a raspy voice. Mrs. McHugh gave her a sympathetic smile.

"Well, we'll be landing soon enough," Mrs McHughtold her. Melissa nodded again, her body felt heavy with sleep.

"Are you sure you want to go straight there? Do you want to get something to eat first… maybe talk?"

"No, thank you. Really, I appreciate everything you are doing Mrs. McHugh. I just, I feel like the sooner I get there andget settled the better," she told her politely but firmly. Mrs. McHugh had suggested both post-poning the trip and talking several times already and Melissa was growing weary. There was nothing to talk about. Her mother was dead and now she was going to live in Forks, Washington with her biological father. That was that. Mrs. McHugh nodded but still looked worried . Melissa sighed and glanced out the window trying to decipher the terrain beneath the clouds.

As the taxi drove into the far off little town of Forks, Melissa was overcome by how green it was. She laid her hot head, as she was recognizing it now after several comments, against the cool of the window and gazed out at the landscape. Melissa shivered as a feeling of déjà vu came over her. Mrs. McHugh reached behind her seat and rubbed Melissa's shoulder. Melissa smiled weakly at her.

"All the way through to La Push," Mrs. McHugh instructed the driver. Melissa's déjà vu grew more intense as they passed Forks high school , the grocery story, the police station, all the way into La Push. It wasn't until the taxi had driven past the La Push school and deeper into the forest did Melissa realize why the surroundings seemed so familiar too her.

"Oh wow," Melissa muttered clutching at the seat belt that ran across her chest. The taxi driver chuckled and looked at her through the rear view mirror.

"It's gorgeous out here isn't it?" he asked. Melissa smiled slightly at him all the while trying to slow her rapidly beating heart. This place. This place had been in her dreams. The ones with the wolves back when she was stranded on the island with the others. Those wild and hulking wolves that had roamed her mind and howled warnings of danger in her consciousness. Those wolves ran here. Melissa breathed deeply trying to regain her sense of calm. Mrs. McHugh twisted in her seat to look at her.

"Melissa? It's okay to be nervous sweetheart,"

Melissa gritted her teeth and nodded. _"I'm not nervous I'm freaked out!"_ she screamed in her head. Before her fears could reveal her by slipping out of her mouth, the cab pulled up in front of a weathered two-story cabin. Melissa popped the door open and climbed out shakily. Mrs. McHugh paid the cab driver quickly and helped Melissa unload her suitcases. They dragged them up the pebble-filled drive and Melissa paused to brush the hair out of her face. In the corner of her eye she saw the curtain of the front window move.

The door opened before they had reached the front step. A smiling and gangly young man took up most of the doorway. He was Quileute for sure.

"Hi! Are you Melissa?" he asked eagerly, bright white teeth flashing against his tawny skin. Melissa nodded shyly. She had misjudged his age. He was tall enough to be a full grown man, but his enthusiasm and manner made him seem younger. Mrs. Mchugh stepped around Melissa and offered a hand for him to shake. He seemed confused at first, but smiled again and easily shook her hand.

"Hello, I'm Mrs. McHugh, Jane Wu's executor of her estate. Are you Jacob?"

"What? Oh, no. I'm Seth, Seth Clearwater," he told them absently releasing Mrs. Mchugh's hand. He turned to look at Melissa more intently and stuck out his hand for her to shake too. She paused, unsettled by his blatant interest, but took his hand anyway. His eyes grew wide as they touched and his mouth gaped in surprise.

"Hi," he said breathlessly. Despite herself,Melissa blushed slightly under his fascinated gaze.

"Hi," she whispered. They stood silently for a few seconds until Mrs. McHugh cleared her throat. Melissa jumped slightly and Seth retracted his hand and laughed quietly.

"Sorry, ha… here let me take your bags," he suggested and gathered them in his arms before they could protest. Melissa and Mrs. McHugh exchanged an impressed look. The kid was strong.

"Come on in, everyone is in the kitchen,"

Mrs. McHugh and Melissa followed him inside into the bland but still homey kitchen.

"This is my mom, Sue Clearwater, and this is Fork's Chief of Police, Chief Swann" Seth informed them depositing Melissa's things unceremoniously in the kitchen. Seth's mom nodded hello and Chief Swann waved and smiled awkwardly.

"You can call me Charlie," he said sticking his hands into his pockets. Mrs. Clearwater was looking above Melissa's head, watching her son. Melissa glanced over her shoulder and caught Seth mouthing the word "boiling,". When he noticed her staring, he clapped his mouth together tightly and flushed. Mrs. McHugh was oblivious to the exchange. She was looking into the living room that offset the kitchen.

"Ah, you must be William Black,"

Melissa turned her head quickly to see a worn looking man in a a wheelchair maneuver himself into the kitchen. Melissa knew he...her father was in a wheel chair. Mrs. McHugh had told her that as well as that his wife, Jacob, Rachel, and Rebecca's mother, had died a long time ago. But she didn't tell her how... powerful he seemed. Her mind registered that by any normal terms he would be considered an old man. His long hair was streaked with grey and his face was made up of wrinkles. But... their seemed to be an aura of authority surrounding him. He seemed almost regal when his soft wise eyes took her in.

"Hello Melissa," he said warmly. Melissa inched toward him, drawn to the absolute sincerity in his voice.

"Hi," she said softly. He smiled and Melissa marveled at the way his face transformed completely into a mask of joy.

"Would you like to sit down? Perhaps we should all sit together in the living room. Is that alright Mrs. McHugh?"

Mrs. McHugh had been watching Melissa's and Billy's exchange with some curiosity and was startled when Billy addressed her.

"Oh! Yes, of course,"

Mrs. Clearwater walked briskly over to Billy Black's ... her father's side and placed a firm hand on his shoulder.

"Yes, I think that it is an excellent idea. Seth will you please put Melissa's things in her room and then go get Jacob?"

"Sure, mom,"

Melissa watched as he gathered all of her stuff and heaved it easily up the narrow stairs. When she turned back, Mrs. Clearwater was whispering into Billy's ear. Billy looked up at her, eyes full of wonder.

"Charlie?" Mrs. Clearwater called.

"Yeah?"

"We should probably get going,"

"Uh, yeah okay," Charlie answered. Both he and Mrs. Clearwater headed for the door, but stopped when they heard Seth clomping down the stairs.

"Hey! Wait up! I'll walk out with you! Nice to meet you Melissa!" Seth cried as he fled out the door with the others. Billy shook his head and laughed slightly as he started back to the living room. Mrs. McHugh smiled encouragingly and motioned for Melissa to follow. But Melissa was overwhelmed. She paused and Mrs. McHugh looked at her in confusion.

"Melissa?" she asked reaching out to her. Melissa backed up and hugged herself tightly.

"Um, do you think I could go upstairs maybe? To lie down? I'm feeling a bit..." Melissa trailed off hopelessly. It was Billy Black who answered.

"Of course, please make yourself at home and rest. I know the last couple of days must have been exhausting for you," he offered gently,concern written over his face. Mrs. McHugh caught Melissa in a tight hug.

"Go ahead, honey. You have already heard everything I am going to discuss with Mr. Black,"

Melissa pulled away from Mrs. McHugh's embrace and nodded. She said a quick thank you to Billy and started to climb the narrow stairs to the attic. The higher she climbed the more relief she felt. When she reached what was to become her new room, she took a deep breath. The attic smelled deeply of pine sol. She let her fingers trail over the bare wooden walls as she made her way to the only window in the room. Billy was... interesting. He seemed like a kind man and there was something greatly intriguing about him. He had an air to him that... well she didn't know. The word that flashed in her mind was "power". It was odd, he seemed so frail... Melissa gazed out into the forest admiring the lushness of the trees. She was still shaken by her realization that she had dreamt of this place before, back on the island, and adding the lack of sleep and stress of meeting her new "family" she was downright drained. Melissa caught a blur of russet among the green of the trees. She blinked, confused. Nothing. Just miles of dense forest. She sighed, walking towards the twin bed in the middle of the attic and collapsing onto it.

Melissa dozed at first, in between the waking and sleeping world. She was pretty sure that Mrs. McHugh actually did come and sit on the bed next to her...murmuring love and well wishes. She explained that she was sorry to leave Melissa so soon, but she had to catch the only flight going back to Hartwell to be at work the next day. Melissa sleepily assured her that it was alright, and yes she would call if she needed anything, before finally saying good-bye. Mrs. McHugh kissed the top of her head and Melissa's eyes gave into the heaviness once more. When she opened her eyes again the attic was empty. Mrs. McHugh was gone. Melissa wondered if she should feel sad about this. But all she felt was exhaustion. She sank into a deep sleep filled with bright and lustrous images, incoherent and undecipherable except for creatures that had plagued her for weeks... the ever present wolves.

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Author's Note: Just a reminder, there will no longer be scheduled updates. I will post the next chapter as soon as I get it finished. Thanks for reading! Reviews,comments, flames, and etc. are always welcome!


	6. Adapt

Disclaimer: I do not own Flight 29 Down or Twilight.

Author's note: Hello! Sorry this update has been long in coming.... Jackson's turn! Also, I use Jackson and Cody interchangeably. They are the same person! :)

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Jackson's cell-phone buzzed, startling him. He flipped off the McHugh's guest bed where he had been sprawled out contemplating the ceiling. Maybe it was Mel. He glanced quickly at the number. Nope. He didn't know who it was and he didn't really care. He dropped the phone on the bed. Jackson didn't want to talk to anyone. Well,except for her.

He leaned heavily against the window pane and stared out on the lawn. Mr. McHugh was mowing the front yard in straight even lines. Jackson was back in suburbia again. He knew he should be grateful. He wasn't in a group home or even with the foster parents he had before. He was in friendly territory. Although he and Nathan had their differences they had formed an easy comadrie form the island. But still, he was back in the suburbs, back at Hartwell.

It had been six hours since Melissa had slid into the McHugh's black SUV with Mrs. McHugh, off to the airport. She didn't want anyone to come with her. They all said good-bye that morning. All being Mr. McHugh, Nathan, Abby, Eric, and himself. Taylor had driven up right after Melissa had left with Lex in the back seat. She had gone out of her way to pick up Lex, who desperately wanted to say good-bye to Melissa. Daley had made some excuse of why not to come. To her credit Taylor looked extremely upset, Lex even more. Ian was still in the hospital, mending nicely, and Jory spent enough time with him as she could. Jackson understood that. Melissa's decision to leave early that morning on a plane instead of driving up that afternoon was sudden. It didn't allow their fellow 29 Downers enough time to do anything other but scramble over to Nathan's to hug and wave her good-bye. They all were crying, even him.

Nathan volunteered to take Lex home even though Lex looked as if he wanted to stay. Nathan was anxious to see Daley and urged Lex to leave. They all knew what was going on. Daley wasn't busy. The pain of losing a mother was too raw for her. Melissa in her weakened lowly state was like a tangile example of it. Daley stayed away. Jackson ruffled Lex's hair and Lex smiled briefly before following an agitated Nathan into the McHugh's second vehicle, a rickety old volvo. Eric sidled up next to Jackson and put an awkward hand on his shoulder. His eyes were red from crying, probably just like Jackson's. Jackson nodded abruptly and patted Eric perhaps a little too forcefully on the back. Eric cringed slightly and sighed, moving away from Jackson to sit next to Taylor on the front step.

"Man this is rough," Eric muttered taking off his hat and twirling it in his hands. Taylor leaned against him and sniffed.

"Yeah," she whispered, staring at the ground. Abby started to pace across the lawn.

"It's just...we all just came together. We were all together again, safe. And now this. Melissa leaves," Abby said her voice tinged with anger and frustration. Eric glared at her.

"It's not like she chose to go," Eric remarked, crushing his hat slightly. Jackson, who had been standing stiffly with his arms crossed and staring at the ground, broke in quietly.

"She could have fought harder," he whispered harshly. The other three stared at him in shock at the tone of his voice.

"I thought Nathan said there wasn't any thing they could do?," Taylor asked, blue eyes wide. Jackson gritted his teeth.

"Legally,no. I guess there wasn't anything to be done," Jackson replied curtly. Eric stood up leaving his hat behind.

"Then what? If they said she had to go, then she had to go," Eric argued, voice rising in defiance. Jackson sighed and moved to take Eric's place next to Taylor. He didn't have enough energy to fight with him.

"She just gave up," Jackson said simply. He ran a hand through his hair. "I just thought that she would..."

"Throw a temper tantrum," Abby interjected. Jackson laughed and Taylor snorted beside him.

"Yeah," he agreed, glancing at Abby who had a slightly mischievous look on her face.

"Her mother died," Eric said. His anger had faded away and the sadness had crept back into his face. Jackson stared at his feet.

"Eric..." Abby started, but Eric interrupted her his voice trembling slightly.

"I mean... she's not going to act normal. She's not going to act like Mel,"Eric continued, clenching and unclenching his fists. He paused abruptly and looked around him in embarrassment.

"I'm going to go," he muttered before walking swiftly away from the others. Jackson exchanged glances with Taylor and Abby. Abby grimaced and snatched up Eric's hat laying next to Taylor.

"Wait! Eric! Hang on, you forgot your hat!"she shouted and ran after him.

"Jeesh," Taylor breathed uncomfortably. Jackson glanced at her cautiously. Her eyes were dry, but red, and her face was splotchy from crying. A single blond curl was stuck to her cheek and Jackson had to stop himself from reaching over and plucking it free. He had to be careful around her. It was so easy with her to fall into ... a what? A relationship? He didn't know. Her face was open and vulnerable and Jackson wanted to comfort her like he had at the island, but it was different now. It would be dangerous now. For her, for him, and especially for Melissa.

On the island he had been consumed with surviving. He didn't dwell on the relationships, the drama, his mind was focused elsewhere. Such single mindedness made him unconscious of how his actions toward both Melissa and Taylor were being received. Every decision, every moment, everything he said or did around them was unmeditated. He acted on instinct. He did what felt right in the moment not pausing for reflection. It was all about survival not feelings. It had taken him a long time to realize that his fierce will to adapt and conquer the adversity surrounding him left the rest of his life, whatever there was of it, in the dust.

But now he knew better and he wouldn't jeopardize what he felt toward Melissa...what he and she shared...just because it was easy to take solace in a relationship of sorts with Taylor. Taylor looked at him critically, taking in his determined if not troubled expression, and sighed.

"Okay," she told him, standing shakily. Jackson looked up at her in confusion.

"Okay what?" he asked, although he sort of already knew. She rolled her eyes playfully at him. A glimmer of the Taylor he was so fond of was shining through her sorrow.

"Okay, I get. Decision still stands. I mean OKAY!" she cried in exasperation , still teasing him slightly. She laughed at his stunned expression and tossed her mane of blond curls over her shoulder. He laughed with her in relief, admiring her strength and character to just walk away from a situation so tempting.

"Okay," he agreed softly.

"Okay," she repeated smiling sadly before walking back to her car and driving down the the street and out of the McHugh's neighborhood.

Jackson watched her go, wistful. After she left he was alone on the front step with his thoughts, not exactly pleasant company by any means. His mind briefly skimmed over his memories of the island as it was prone to do lately. Already after just a few days the memories were becoming foggy. Certain images stood out. The backs of the Captain, Ian, Abby, and Jory as they pushed through the leaves of the jungle to get help. A pasty Eric and Taylor laying out on the beach in denial of the situation around them. Melissa slumped over in shame over the ruined matches. Lex's joyful face as they revealed the birthday present Jackson had made from him. Daley's shock and Nathan's outright embarrassment when Melissa revealed her best friend's crush. The eyes of the rest as he refused to be their leader the first time, a mixture of pleasure, disappointment and fear. He remembered the menacing color of the clouds of the first storm and Eric's equally dangerous face as he accused Jackson and revealed his secret fears and hopes. He remembered the unreal sight of the planes coming to rescue them. But mostly...mostly he remembered Melissa.

Melissa Wu was possibly the most annoying person Cody Jackson had ever met. She was the epitome of every quality that grated on his nerves and made him want to lash out just to prove that person wrong. She was a do-gooder. He recognized it the instant she came shyly up to him, tripping slightly in her brand new flip flops. Her round face was embarrassingly hopeful as she introduced her self. Jackson had to reign himself in order to keep his response reasonably polite. He didn't need to antagonize the natives on his first day at Hartwell, he had all year to do that. Although his curt replies to her held no outright antagonism, he couldn't help but let some of his mocking thoughts seep into his words. He was new, yes. But he knew that wasn't what drew her. To most of the world he was the unhinged loner and juvenile delinquent. He was certain that the majority of Hartwell's student saw him this way. He was the smudge in their otherwise shiny, happy world. Most treated him with polite indifference, others ignored him out of fear and another group who antagonized him because of it. But there were a few, a tiny population of people who treated him differently. Melissa was one of them, a do-gooder, who treated him like a charity case, a poor foster kid. He hated that group most of all.

He didn't need anyone. He was just fine on his own. But apparently this girl didn't get the memo. He had deliberately sat underneath the tree farthest away from the gaggle of bratty rich kids eating their lunch and became completely involved in his book. He made no eye contact. But still the little girl came, she had to be what… 14? 15? At 17,and a street-wise 17 year-old no less, he had no patience for this naïve girl decked out in baby blue with the kiddy barrettes. He eyed her cooly as she did her duty as self-appointed good samaratin and laughed internally as she rambled nervously. It wasn't until later in the day that he realized that Melissa fell into another group all-together.

He caught her staring at him more than once, in the hall, in the one class they shared, and much later when she almost ran to catch up to him to tell him excitedly about this "great opportunity", this "super trip", that would be "really fun". He shut her down almost instantly. He was broke. C'mon,now! Remember, he was the charity case? But she seemed unfazed. Yes, there was a wrench in her plans, but... Jackson suddenly realized that he had been totally and completely wrong about her. The girl had _plans_. He looked at her sceptically. What really was going on? If she had been the typical do-gooder that he had been accustomed to, a church worker or even some misguided teacher, she would have simpered something like "oh that's too bad" and moved on to the next thing he may need help with. If she had been the typical do-gooder would she have that glint in her eye? She looked...fascinated. Was it the good girl/bad boy complex? He had run into a few of those too. Sure, that must be it. Melissa probably thought he was the wild card that would shake up her otherwise boring existence.

But still, even though he could definitely pick up a crush vibe form her, the label still didn't quite fit. This annoyed him even more. This girl didn't quite fit into anything he had experienced before. It made his head buzz. Then, she totally shocked him. Somehow she had convinced the other club-kids or whoever to take him on that trip for free... he should of immediately put her back in the "do-gooder" category. A free trip to Palau? A departure from this straight-laced preppy place? Can you say charity? But he couldn't... she wanted something more from him. More than the bad boy crush that emanated off her when she blushed. It was like she saw something in him and was intrigued by it, like he was some great find, some epic story that she was hungrily watching develop. This thought absolutely pissed him off. Who the hell was she to expect great things from him? He almost wanted to refuse the trip just to show that he was incapable of living a life bigger than he was used to. The thought of spending a week around her was just intolerable. But... Cody's survival instinct, that knack for adapting and finding the best possible way to live in any heinous situation, kicked in.

Palou was a way out. He could be on some beautiful island for a week instead of this manic suburbia. His foster parents were alright. But they certainly fell into the do-gooder category, although he thought the husband could easily slide into "polite indifference". This was a perfect escape. He just had to stay away from this girl. It didn't work that way as it turned out. Not even close. His anger and annoyance had gradually faded away to indifference, compassion, and finally friendship. In all of his years and in all of the numerous places he had lived, he had never had a friend like Melissa. She was constant. She was loyal. She fought for him. Few people had ever fought for him. Although, he was still confused on why. Her devotion was so intense it scared him,but on the island he needed her and her friendship to survive. Yes, he knew she liked him more than just a "friend". He had suspected as much since the first day he met her, but it wasn't until the danger had passed did he really see her as more than a friend.

It wasn't until they were leaving the island and the tropical storm "Melissa" oddly enough was rolling in. He been noticing a change in her in the last week or so. She seemed more furtive, less careful, almost as if she was cracking out of the typical "do-gooder" shell she often touted. More of the confusing, irritating, fascinating air seeped out of the cracks and Jackson began to feel a pull toward her almost as strong has his urge for survival. It confused him. It scared him. But all in all he was entranced.

When the planes came and he was faced with returning to the stagnant world, he only thought of one person. When would he see her again? She promised to be there for him and somehow oddly he found himself overcome with relief. She would not leave him. He knew it. The decision was easier than he thought. No matter the connection he shared with Taylor, their easy commadrie. He felt that Melissa was integral to him as a person. He needed Melissa to survive, to breathe. Beyond that he didn't know. But he was willing to find out.

Jackson was only brought out of his reverie when Nathan pulled up into the driveway and slammed the car door shut. Nathan trudged up the driveway, eyes glued the ground. He stopped abruptly when he encountered Jackson on the front step.

"Have you been sitting here all this time?" he asked surprised.

"Yup," Jackson grunted.

"For two hours?"

"Um, I guess,"

"Huh," Nathan grunted and collapsed beside him. They sat in silence for awhile, watching the little neighbor boy across the street struggle to get his miniature basketball into the hoop as his parents whooped and carried on. Jackson wondered if he should say something. Not being a particularly social person by nature, he didn't know what. He settled on the obvious.

"Didn't go well with Daley did it?" he stated more than asked. Nathan gave him a weird look and Jackson shrugged.

"You look more miserable now than when you left," he told him.

"Oh, great," Nathan muttered sarcastically, rolling his eyes. Jackson remained silent, waiting for Nathan to elaborate. Nathan sighed and swallowed.

"Daley is..." he started, trying to find the words.

"Daley is being..."

"A bitch," Jackson supplied for him. Nathan reddened in anger.

"What?" he snarled. Jackson shrugged simply, unbothered by Nathan's outrage.

"She's in pain. She doesn't like to show it. So she just ..." Jackson trailed off.

"Acts like a bitch, yeah, okay, whatever..." Nathan muttered.

"Yeah," Jackson agreed.

"This just sucks!' Nathan shouted slapping the palm of his hand on the concrete step.

"Yeah," Jackson answered. If Nathan had hurt himself in his outburst he didn't show it, he just continued to stare at the little boy, missing the hoop over and over again. Finally Jackson asked the question he really wanted to ask.

"When do you think Melissa will call?" he asked nonchalantly.

Nathan grimaced. "I don't know man... I hope soon. But who knows right? She's not exactly acting normal, is she? Grief I guess,"

"Right," Jackson muttered before rising stiffly from his perch and stretched. "I'm going in," he told Nathan. Nathan rose too and followed him silently. They puttered around the house for a couple hours, not really saying much to each other. Mr. McHugh was in and out of the house intent on finishing his weekend errands while his wife was away. Nathan made an effort to unpack his bags but only succeeded in dumping his dirty clothes in a pile on the laundry room floor. Jackson didn't even bother. He flipped restlessly through the many cable channels the McHughs had purchased not really seeing anything. Eventually he had wandered back to his room where he had been laying sprawled out on the bed until the vibration of the phone had startled him into motion.

The phone buzzed again and he lunged for it. Nope. Not her. He sank onto the bed, head in his hands. There was a knot in the bottom of his stomach and he clawed at it uncomfortably over his shirt. He felt uneasy. He was both angry at Melissa and sad for her at the same time. She was supposed to be here with him. She had promised and although he knew that tragic circumstances had made her leave he couldn't help but feel betrayed. Why did she wait until he realized he needed her to leave? He had gotten used to her in his life....and now he felt as if there was a gaping hole where her presence had been. He'd have to adapt. To find some way to survive without her. Why couldn't he go back to the way it was before he met her? He punched his pillow in outright frustration. He couldn't breathe without her.

"Hey Jackson!" Nathan shouted from down the hall, temporarily distracting Jackson.

"What?" Jackson yelled back.

"Answer your phone will you? He's calling me now!"

"What? Who?"

"Oh it's ...dude it doesn't matter! Just answer!" Nathan shouted at the same moment Jackson's phone started to buzz once more.

"Got it!" Jackson snapped and flipped open his phone.

"Good!" Nathan shouted back. Jackson rolled his eyes.

"Hello?" he asked.

"You guys should really invest in an intercom or something,"

"Eric?" Jackson asked in surprise.

"The one and only," Eric McGorrill replied easily.

"Hey...what's up?" Jackson asked, somewhat uncomfortable.

"Hey now, don't worry I'm not going to go crazy emotional on you or anything," Eric snapped.

"I didn't think you were going to," Jackson replied calmly meanwhile thinking the opposite.

Jackson could hear Eric sigh through the phone.

"Well, I kind of did earlier...just wanted to apologize for acting like an idiot,"

"You wanted to apologize? That's why you have been calling me non-stop?"

"Uh yeah. Sorry. Sounds kind of stalker-ish now that I think about it. Kind of lost my head..." Eric trailed off, listening to a female voice in the background.

"Who is that?" Jackson asked.

"Oh, it's Abby," Eric said still distracted by whatever she was saying.

"Abby?" Jackson asked incredulously.

"Yup, she followed me home and made me feel downright stupid about the whole thing this morning," he commented before shouting "Ow! Jeesh, Abby...here".

Suddenly Abby was on the line.

"Jackson," she demanded.

"Um, yeah?"

"Has Melissa called you yet?"

"No, she hasn't. Mrs. McHugh called a half hour ago. She said she was on her way home..." Jackson began.

"Whatever," Abby interrupted. "Have you called her?"

Jackson paused, taken back.

"No," he said.

"Well, you should," Abby told him before hanging up abruptly. Jackson stared at his phone in confusion. Somehow it was so much easier to wait until Melissa called him. But Jackson thought of her wild eyes and suddenly he was on his feet, pounding down the stairs, and flipping through some copies Mrs. McHugh had left on the desk in the kitchen in the flurry to leave. There. There it was. Jackson drew out his cell-phone and dialed.

* * *

Author's Note: Thanks for reading!


	7. Welcome

Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or Flight 29 Down...or Johnny Pacar, or Robert Pattinson, or..... you get the picture :)

Author's Note: Here's a little present for being so patient! Two chapters uploaded in one day!

* * *

Jacob barely felt the branches slapping against him as he ran through the trees. His mind was lost in thought. What would this mean? The positive, of course, was that they wouldn't have to hide this secret world from her any longer. However, on the negatives side… he would have a baby werewolf as a half-sister living in his father's house. Dangerous and complicated. Jacob gritted his teeth and kept his nose to the ground, increasing his already fast speed. Mostly dangerous. This girl, clearly on the verge of shifting, was in the nerve racking situation of meeting her father. If she was a potential werewolf then there was no doubt Billy was her father. She could possibly lose it any second. Who knew? His dad, proud but still vulnerable , in the path of newborn werewolf, could be in danger this very second!

Jacob started to shift to human as he ran and barely paused to slip his raggedy shorts back on. He was panting slightly as he ran around the back of the house to the driveway where an elegantly dressed black woman was climbing gracefully into a rusted cab. Jacob halted, unsure if it was a good idea to address her or not. Before he could make a decision, the woman glanced over her shoulder and caught his gaze. He waved vaguely at her and smiled in what he hoped was a friendly way. She smiled sadly in return and climbed back out of the cab.

"Just a few minutes, please?" she asked the driver politely. Jacob ran a hand through his shorne hair trying to smooth it.

"Now, you must be Jacob," she said holding her hand out for him to shake. Jacob quckly pulled his hand away from his hair and shook her hand.

"Yeah, yeah I am. And you are Melissa's…" he began.

"Friend. Well, I hope so anyway. My son is her best friend and I have known her for most of her life. Her mother too. I am the executor of Jane Wu's estate," she rambled slightly, clearly upset. Jacob released her hand and the woman anxiously smoothed her skirt. Jacob looked at the woman's face, really, for the the first time. She was , not as beautiful as Nessie or Nessie's mother for that matter (any vampire really), but she had the cheekbones and skin of a model. It was hard for Jacob to believe that she had a teenage son, especially when her face was as vulnerable as it was now.

"So you're Mrs. Mc…"

"Mrs. McHugh. Yes! Sorry about that. I'm just a little scattered at the moment," she jumped in. Jacob nodded uncomfortably and Mrs. McHugh glanced worriedly back at the house.

"So she's in there with my dad… alone?" Jacob asked hesitantly. Mrs. McHugh looked back at him, eyes hazy.

"What? Oh, yes. Well, she actually is asleep upstairs. She's…well she's overwhelmed,"

"Yeah," Jacob said, thinking that soon Melissa was going to be even more overwhelmed. Mrs. McHugh's face tightened, full lips pressed together, her eyes suddenly focused.

"You're going to have to help her. I know it is not easy. This is a momentous and sudden change for you too, I imagine. Melissa has been through a lot. A lot. More than any mother could wish for a child. She had to survive on a deserted island for nearly a month and now she has to face the death of her mother,"

Jacob grimaced, imagining everything Melissa had to go through the last month or so.

"And now she is living here with people she's never met," Jacob inserted. Mrs. McHugh nodded and cocked her head curiously, looking at him in a new light.

"It hasn't sunk in you know. Everything. She's cried. But… I don't think she is feeling much of anything. I told this to … Mr. Black. He seemed understanding. It's just the next couple of months are going to be rough and I just want to make sure she will be cared for. She isn't letting anyone in. Please call me if, just call me," she told him earnestly slipping him a delicate business card.

"S-sure," Jacob stuttered, overcome by this woman's fervent emotion. Mrs. McHugh placed a gentle hand on his arm and nodded a thank you before returning to the cab and driving off.

Jacob watched the elegant woman go, brow furrowed. He knew obviously that she cared about the girl, about Melissa. It was written all over her face. But her requests seemed beyond just care, but rather …love. This woman loved Melissa almost as if she were her daughter and it tore her apart to leave her in this strange and far away town. Jacob couldn't help but think that Melissa's place was with her friends and not here in La Push where the supernatural was normal and danger seemed to pop up every Tuesday. Under different circumstances Melissa could have stayed with the McHughs and eventually been happy. But her being a werewolf changed everything. Her destiny would be with them now.

Jacob frowned to himself before quietly opening the door. All worries regarding the rightness of Meliss'as being there were wiped away when he saw Billy's face. It was so peaceful and filled with light that any worries regarding Melissa's proper place were irrelevant. If his father was so happy to have her here, then how could it possibly be wrong? Billy motioned for him to join him at the kitchen table.

"So…" Jacob began. Billy reached across the kitchen table and placed a hand on Jacob's.

"It's true. She is on the verge of the transformation. Her temperature is escalated and apparently her appearance has changed greatly. Mrs. McHugh was very concerned about it,"

"So that means…"

"She is definitely my daughter and your sister, yes,"

Jacob inhaled deeply and exhaled through his nose. La Push was about to get a lot more interesting… Again.

Billy patted Jacob's hand assuredly. "Don't worry. Everything will be fine. I know it."

Jacob rolled his eyes teasingly at his father and stood up, stretching and loosening his tightly wound limbs.

"Sure, sure. So she's upstairs, then? "

"She's sleeping. Poor girl is exhausted. I'm going to pan-fry some fish and maybe you can bring it up to her a bit later," Billy suggested hopefully. Jacob chewed his lip. He was anxious to lay eyes on his new sister but the idea was slightly off putting. Jacob decided to dodge the request for now.

"So I ran into Mrs. McHugh outside. She cares a lot about Melissa,"

Billy nodded almost grudgingly.

"Yes, she does. I'm sure she would have offered to take care of Melissa in a heartbeat. But there is no doubt in my mind now that she belongs here. She's a part of us. A part of the pack. We are the best ones to help her through her grief and coming transformation now,"

Jacob nodded in agreement. He couldn't argue with that nor the hopeful fire apparent on Billy's face.

"Before I do anything I need to check in with Sam. We all need to be in agreement in what needs to be done," Jacob muttered mostly to himself. Billy looked at him sharply.

"You are not going to tell her?" he said more as an order than a question. Jacob shook his head.

"No, don't worry dad. She wouldn't believe us. I sure as hell wouldn't have believed it until it was happening to me. We will need to be extra careful around her. Any little thing can set her off. Hopefully she'll make the transition before the end of the month so we won't have to worry about convincing her not to attend school. She needs to be surrounded by the pack at all times just in case,"

Billy pursed his lips and nodded. This time Jacob patted his dad's outstretched hand and rose from the table stopping a minute to sneak a glance up the attic stairs before heading out the door.

"Don't take too long," Billy called after him.

"Sure, sure," Jacob replied.

When he returned a few hours later, the house smelled strongly of fish. His father was at the computer in the corner of the living room squinting at the screen.

"Hey," Jake grunted pulling open the fridge and grabbing a jug of cool drinking water. Billy looked up from the computer and narrowed his eyes accusingly.

"What happened to not taking too long?" he asked. Jacob shrugged and poured himself a glass of water.

"Sorry about that. It took awhile to get everyone calmed down and on the same page. Paul said that Rachel is doing fine, still angry. He doesn't know how she will react to the news that Melissa is a .... you know." he said replacing the water jug and taking a gulp of water from his glass.

Billy's forehead wrinkled in worry, but he said nothing. Jacob wandered into the living room, pausing at the stairs to the attic.

"Did she come down yet?"

"No,"

Jacob nodded. He suspected as much. Jacob sprawled out on the couch, exhausted.

"Oh, Sam offered to lend some of his pack members to do rounds at the Cullen's ,"

"That was considerate of him,"

Jacob nodded absently.

"I'm hoping it won't come to that. Alice, and Edward for that matter, are pretty sure that the threat won't last,"

"Let's hope so," Billy said softly turning back to the computer. Jacob leaned forward to glance at the computer screen.

"What are you looking at?" he asked. Billy sighed and slumped in his chair slightly.

"I was reading up on all the articles about the survivors of Flight 29 Down. I wanted to get a better feel for what she has been going through,"

Jacob nodded. That made sense. In fact he should probably do that too.

"What's that then? That's not about the plane crash," Jacob asked pointing to an open window on the screen that had been minimized.

"How to help your loved ones through grief,"

"Oh," Jacob muttered. They sat silently reading the material, Billy straining to see the small print on the computer and Jacob taking it all in over his father's shoulder. Soon the silence was broken by the angry rumbling of Jacob's stomach.

"Time for lunch?" Billy asked. Jacob nodded smiling.

"Actually probably time for dinner," Jacob commented, getting up and stretching the kinks out of his back that had formed from sitting in an awkward position looking over Billy's shoulder. Billy glanced at the clock and frowned.

"Hm, the time got away from me. I'm going to heat up the fish. Why don't you go and see if Melissa would like to come down for dinner or if she wants it in her room?" He asked.

"I thought we were just bringing it up to her," Jacob said rather unkindly. He wasn't sure if he was ready to have this almost brand new werewolf sitting at the dinner table with him and his father.

"Jacob," Billy warned. Jacob sighed and started up the attic stairs.

"Thank you," Billy called.

Jacob said nothing for he was deep in thought as he anticipated what he would find. Would she have Billy's eyes? Would he and she share the same nose? He knocked on the door lightly waiting breathless for an answer.

"Come in," answered a tired but gentle voice. Jacob slowly pushed open the door and gazed around the newly cleaned room. A worn out looking but still pretty girl with long glistening black hair and dark eyes peered blearily at him over the hand-me-down comforter. He could see that she was gripping her blinking cell-phone, alerting her to missed calls, against her chest protectively.

"Um, hi," Jacob stuttered, frozen in the doorway.

"Hi," she repeated. The newly found siblings stared at each other in silence until the vibration of Melissa's cell-phone startled them both. Melissa sheepishly tucked the cell-phone beneath the covers as she herself emerged, brushing a lock of hair behind her ear that had fallen in front of her eyes.

"Uh, you don't need to get that?"Jacob asked stupidly. Melissa shook her head wincing slightly as if in pain.

"No, I just... I don't feel like talking to anyone right now," she said and stared at him intently.

"So you are Jacob right?"

Jacob laughed. He forgot they hadn't met before.

"Yeah, yeah I'm Jacob," he said smiling. Melissa smiled as well, albeit sadly, but he caught a glimpse of his father in that smile.

They stood silent once again, considering each other. Suddenly Melissa stepped forward and stuck out a hand.

"Melissa," she said, "Nice to meet you,"

Jacob laughed again. Apparently shaking hands was the thing at Hartwell. If Melissa understood his amusement she didn't show it. He took her hand in his own and shook it firmly. Hot. They weren't kidding. Concern overshadowed the mirth. The girl was about to blow. He released her hand quickly and let his own dangle at his side.

"Uh, so I was just wondering if you were hungry. Um, Da-Billy, fried some fish,"

Melissa bit her lip and nodded.

"Alright," Jacob said and moved to leave. Melissa followed him shyly, her hands encircling her waist protectively. Jacob turned quickly to stop her.

"Oh you don't need to come down," he said bluntly. Melissa gazed at him surprised. "I mean if you don't want to," Jacob added on.

"No, I do," she insisted. Jacob shrugged and secretly wished she would stay tucked away in the safety of her own room. The smell of the fish grew stronger as they came down the steps. Jacob's stomach growled eagerly in anticipation. When they entered the kitchen, Billy greeted them cheerfully at his seat at the kitchen table having already prepared their plates.

Melissa sat down quickly whispering a soft hello and Jacob took a seat opposite her pulling his chair out as far as he could so he could stretch his legs without invading her space. They munched silently for a few minutes until Billy cleared his throat.

"So ah, Melissa, is your room alright for now?"

Melissa swallowed quickly and blushed.

"Yes, it's fine, I mean great," she stuttered nodding frantically. Jacob smirked to himself. No one spoke after that. There was no sound except for the continuous chewing and occasional scrape of a metal fork across a plate.

The phone rang shrilly breaking the awkward silence

Once...

Twice…

Jacob finally jumped up from the table and picked up the phone at the third ring.

"Yeah?" Jacob said watching Melissa and his father warily.

"Is it true?"

Jacob sighed.

"Leah" he mouthed to Billy who smiled and nodded calmly. Melissa had looked up quickly when he had sighed, but turned back to her food abruptly when their eyes met. Jacob turned his back to the kitchen table.

"Well?" Leah demanded.

"Yeah,"

Leah groaned slightly. "I can't believe it," she muttered darkly.

"I told you!" Seth cried in the background.

"Shut up" Leah snapped. Jacob heard Seth snicker slightly in the background.

"Poor girl," Leah continued. "She doesn't know what's coming,"

"Yeah," Jacob grunted again. He was trying not to say anything more than necessary. He didn't want Melissa, or Billy for that matter, to know they were talking about her.

"I mean sure, being a werewolf is bad, but …" Lead led on mischievously. Jacob frowned, confused by her change in tone.

"Having Seth moon all over you is another matter,"

"WHAT!?!" Jacob cried despite himself at the same time Seth shouted "HEY!" in protest.

"Oh, it's not what you think… She's spared the misfortune of him imprinting on her,"

Jacob secretly let out a quite sigh of relief.

"But he has been talking about her non-stop…"

"LEAH!" Seth shouted, outraged.

Leah lowered her voice to imitate Seth's.

"Man Leah, you should have seen her! She looks nothing like Jacob… She's pretty!"

Jacob said nothing. He was actually wondering if he should feel insulted. Before Jacob could respond, however, a great commotion burst over the phone as Seth wrestled the phone out of his sister's grasp.

"Hey… Hey man!" Seth gasped slightly. Jacob rolled his eyes.

"So, uh, about…"

"We'll talk about it later"

"Yeah, uh, okay"

"Yup, bye Seth" Jacob said, impatient to get back to the dinner table.

"Wait!"

"What?"

"I just wanted to let you know that everything is cool with the Cullens now,"

"What do you mean everything is cool NOW?" Jacob demanded through his teeth.

"Oh uh, just you know with the dream… um, I explained it to Edward and Bella,"

"WHAT?"

"Jake, dude, seriously it's cool. I mean I kind of heard the dream, sort a, when I came to get you....you were really focusing on it. But I mean...it's just like you are happy that she is going to grow up right? That you are happy you will get to be with her forever. That's all. Nothing nasty," Seth rambled.

Jacob groaned and rested his head against the wall. "Fine,"he grumbled. "Whatever, I'll talk to you later,"

"Kay, bye Ja-"

Jacob hung up on him before Seth could change his mind. He had just barely placed the phone back in the cradle when it rang shrilly again. Jacob snapped it up.

"What Seth?" he snarled. Silence greeted him on the other end of the line. Jacob huffed.

"Helloooo?" he dragged out.

"Is Melissa Wu there?" a strange male voice asked. Jacob paused and glanced sharply back at Melissa and Billy who were watching him unabashedly now.

"Who is this?" he demanded.

"My name is Jackson, Cody Jackson,"

"Hang on," he said looking over his shoulder.

"Cody Jackson," he mouthed. He watched as Melissa's eyes grew wide and she started to get up before she stopped herself and sank back into her chair. She gave a quick shake of her head. Right and then left. No.

Jacob cleared his throat.

"Uh, sorry man, but she's asleep right now. Can I take a message?"

"Yeah, uh, just ask her to call me when she can alright?" the stranger asked.

"Will do. Bye now,"

"Right, bye"

As Jacob headed back to the table he tried to catch Melissa's eye but she her gaze was firmly planted on her vanishing meal before her. The rest of the meal continued in silence and was over quickly. Jacob urged his father to take his bath and offered to do the dishes for him. Although his face was still bright with hope and excitement, Billy was quickly becoming worn out. Billy nodded acknowledging his tiredness and said a warm goodnight to Melissa and Jacob. After Billy had slowly maneuvered himself into his bedroom and shut the door behind him, Jacob quickly gathered the plates and brought them to the sink. Melissa followed him hesitantly.

"Uh thanks for... you know covering for me," she said softly. Jacob glanced over his shoulder at her and tried to smile encouragingly, but he was afraid it came out a little stiff. He would really feel a lot better if she went upstairs.

"Sure,"he replied and turned on the hot water.

"It's just that I'm not really ready to talk to anyone," Melissa continued louder in order to be heard over the rush of water. Jacob glanced over his shoulder again and nodded.

"I understand. You'll talk when you are ready,"

Melissa nodded too, absently. Jacob then remembered what Mrs. McHugh had urged him earlier that day and he cleared his throat nervously.

"And you know, when you are ready to talk... I'm here," he told her a bit awkwardly. His offer elicited a genuine smile from Melissa, brighter than any of her smiles he had seen all day.

"Thanks Jacob. I'm going to head back upstairs now. Good night,"

"Yeah, night," Jacob replied as Melissa turned to go back up the attic stairs. But before Jacob could return his full attention back to the dishes, however, Melissa asked a question that caused him to go rigid in shock.

"Hey um, this is kind of a weird question, but there aren't any wolves or anything like that in the forest right?"

The plate Jacob was washing slipped out of his and crashed to the floor, breaking into large jagged chunks.

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Author's note: Thanks for reading! As always, reviews and comments are welcome! Go see Twilight in theaters! Oh, here is a preview of what is to come in the next two chapters:

_The pain was everywhere, clawing at him, ripping him, burning him. The pain was everywhere and he couldn't escape. He couldn't move. His body stayed devastatingly still. If only he could run. If only he could fight. But he couldn't even bat an eye-lid. All he saw was darkness._


	8. Action

Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight. I do not own Flight 29 Down. I also do not own a digital camera.

Author's Note: I apologize for not updating sooner. Life is big and complex! :D

* * *

Jackson's sneakers squeaked on the pristine vinyl floor of the hospital. He kept his eyes planted firmly on the back of Abby's head as they trudged through the hall. He was afraid if he looked up he would catch glimpses of patients and families haunted by sickness. He hadn't even wanted to come here in the first place. Abby was the one who was intent on gettingeveryone together to visit Ian and had been prodding Jackson all week to commit to the visit. She said it would do him good to get out of the house. It had been a week since Jackson had called the Black residence and recieved a curt "she's sleeping" from a guy he assumed was Melissa's half brother. "She's sleeping" sounded like one of the excuses he and Nathan had given to Melissa's friends when they had called wanting to speak to her right after it all happened. Now he was the one being brushed off. He had managed to exchange a few one- lined e-mails with her during the week. She kept it simple. She didn't give anything away, kind of like him. Except of course Melissa was most definitely NOT him, she was his polar opposite. It frustrated him to no end. She had left this empty gap within him and he was desperately try to close it. He just couldn't get close to her.

He knew the others weren't getting any further. Mrs. McHugh reminded them that it had only been a week. She was settling in and dealing with everything. "Give her time," she told them confidently, but Jackson could see the anxiety in the back of her eyes. Nathan had bugged his mother endlessly for details, but she only told them the obvious. Melissa was sad. The Blacks welcomed her. She seemed a bit overwhelmed but dealt with it well considering the circumstances. She didn't want to talk.

Finally wallowing in the house all week had gotten to him. Jackson had trapped himself without knowing it and his need for escape had then some how catapulted him to Hartwell's local hospital, trailing behind Eric and Abby.

"What room is it again?" Eric asked, squinting his eyes to see the small white numbers posted next to the rooms. Abby made a show of pretending to choke him.

"Eric! I have told you like three times! It's 324! Or wait, is it 322?"Abby trailed off.

Eric halted and turned swiftly to point accusingly at Abby.

"Ha! You don't even know!" Eric cried. Jackson rolled his eyes.

"It's 326," he told them, but they were too busy ribbing each other to notice. They had been doing that all week, the flirty, teasing back and forth thing. He really didn't know what was going on there. He also really didn't care.

"IT"S 326!" Jackson shouted causing both Abby and Eric to pause and stare.

"Okay, okay, you don't have to shout," came a mellow voice. The three turned to see Ian grinning at them from his wheelchair.

"You passed it," he informed them cheerfully.

"IAN!" Abby shouted rushing forward to embrace him awkwardly. Ian laughed and did his best to hug her back.

"Wow! Calm down, it's not like you didn't just see me two days ago!" he teased. Abbly pulled back smiling as well and pushed Eric forward.

"-Uh, hey man, good to see you up and about," Eric said giving him a small whack with his hat. Ian laughed and pretended to be hurt.

"Thanks man, you don't look too bad yourself," Ian replied winking at Abby who colored and glared at him. Eric, unaware of the past "lost" flight 29 downer's exchange, merely shrugged.

"I try," he said moving aside so Jackson could get through.

"Hey Ian," Jackson greeted. He glanced down at Ian's leg.

"Got enough signatures?"he teased. Ian shrugged and laughed again.

"Good to see you too, Jackson,"

Jackson nodded and looked around.

"Hey we probably should head back to your room," he suggested.

"Yeah we are kind of blocking the hallway aren't we?" Ian muttered. Ian turned and waved innocently at an irritated-looking nurse who was eyeing them from the nurses station.

The four of them followed Ian as he slowly rolled himself back into his room. It was spacious as far as hospital rooms go, especially for a single room. Jackson had a feeling that Ian's father being a C.E.O of some bigwig textile company had something to do with it. The room was decorated rather thoroughly with flowers and balloons. Pictures of friends and family as well as clippings from the past week's presss releases were tacked precariously on the cork board provided by the hospital. A stuffed purple monkey with it's own cast sat propped up against a pillow on the bed.

"Here it is! Home sweet home!"Ian joked as he positioned himself next to the window. Eric snorted and jumped up on the bed.

"Now what is this?" he asked, dangling the monkey by it's armpits.

"That is in fact, a he. His name is Moose," Ian told them.

"His name is Moose? The monkey's name is Moose?" Abby asked, laughing. Ian shrugged.

"Sydney named it. Jory said we shouldn't change the name,"

"Who is Sydney?" Jackson asked, still standing near the door.

"Sydney is is Ian's little sister," Abby informed them and moved to sit in the wicker chair next to Ian.

"Oh, I didn't know you had a little sister," Jackson said, surprised. Ian nodded.

"Yup, she and my mom and dad are here constantly. I think they are worried I'll disappear again or something,"

"Speaking of people who are here constantly... where's Jory?" Abby asked. Ian rolled his eyes at her.

"She's not here all the time," he countered.

"Uh, whatever dude," Eric muttered still playing with the monkey. Abby smiled slyly.

"C'mon Ian, don't play coy," Abby prodded, leaning forward to poke him in the arm. Ian blushed slightly and brushed away her hand.

"She went to meet Nathan and the others. He parked in the wrong parking garage and they were totally lost. This is a pretty big hospital, actually,"

Abby frowned slightly. "Who is coming with him?"

"Lex, Daley, and Taylor," Ian responded.

"Hmm, really? I wasn't sure if Daley would come. She said she had something going on," Abby commented sarcastically using air quotes when she said something. Ian shrugged and Eric lobbed the stuffed monkey at Abby's head.

"Hey!" Abby screeched shielding her head with her arms. Ian burst out laughing and Jackson chuckled slightly. She shot all three of them a death glare.

"Serves you right! We already talked about this Abby! No provoking Daley!" Eric ordered. Abby harrumphed and rolled her eyes.

"Since when did NOT provoking Daley become your thing?" Jackson demanded raising an eyebrow suspiciously. Eric flopped back on the bed and grunted.

"Since Melissa went to Washington. Someone has to be peacekeeper," Eric muttered to the ceiling. Jackson swallowed hard and turned to stare blankly at the corkboard. Ian cleared his throat nervously but Abby merely snorted.

"And YOU are the new peacemaker?" she questioned. Eric threw an arm over his eyes.

"Shut-up," he snapped. A burst of noise comprised of scuffling feet and nervous voices floated down the hall. Jackson turned his attention from the cork board and stuck his head out the door. Jory was happily leading a flock of flight 29 down survivors to the room. Jackson stepped back in quickly and walked silently over to stand next to Abby. He crossed his arms stiffly. Abby shot him a curious look.

"They're coming," he told her shortly. Before Abby could say anything in response the group was through the door.

"Hi every- wait why is Moose on the floor?" Jorry asked, face changing from happy to concerned. Ian leaned forward and grasped the monkey by the neck in one quick stroke.

"Ah, nothing. Sorry," Ian muttered. Abby smiled and bounced up to embrace Jory.

"Moose just couldn't stand being in the same bed with Eric any longer, too smelly," Abby teased waving a hand in front of her nose to ward off the imaginary offensive smell.

"Hey now!" Eric complained sitting up on the bed. Taylor followed behind Jory grinning.

"Eric stinks? Wow I never knew. You'd think I'd have picked up on that after being stuffed in that moldy tent with him for so many days," Taylor joked. Eric folded his arms and pretended to be irritated. Taylor glanced at Jackson nervously and he nodded to her in greeting. Taylor forced a giggle at Eric and plopped next to him on the bed. Nathan was next into the room. He strode energetically past Jory and the hospital bed and stuck a hand out for Ian to shake.

"Hey man!" Nathan said.

"Nathan, what's up?" Ian responded shaking Nathan's hand with just as much energy.

"Nothing much, nothing much," Nathan answered, sticking his hands in his pockets and moving to stand casually next to Jackson and Abby. Jory had taken Abby's place seated in the wicker chair next to Ian with Moose the monkey sitting contently in her lap. Daley and Lex were the last ones to enter the room. Lex was beaming and walking in front of Daley who had her arms laced protectvely around his shoulders. Daley herself look slightly uneasy but smiled easily enough when greeted. After that they were all silent. Each one was unsure what to say to each other now that they were gathered together once again. After a few moments of awkward silence Daley cleared her throat and and glanced eagerly around the room.

"I guess the gang is all back together again," she joked rather lamely while lifting a hand from Lex's shoulder to tuck a copper curl behind her ear.

"Some gang!" Taylor snorted from the bed. Eric nudged her and pointed at Lex.

"Hey we've got boy genius!" he protested as Lex grinned.

"Moose," Jory piped in making the purple monkey dance.

"Wheels" Ian offered gesturing to himslef. Abby laughed and squeezed Ian's shoulder.

"Let's not forget Senor Stinky over there,"

Eric pretended to look offended and promptly threw one of the two remaining hospital pillows in Abby's direction.

"Stop it!" Abby screeched once again. Taylor gave Eric a strange look.

"I don't think he can!" she yelped. Daley and Nathan exchanged a look and burst out laughing. Soon everyone joined in. The low oxygen to person ratio was increasing the hilarity of the atmosphere in the room. Only Jackson was unaffected. It was something that Daley had said. _The gang is all back ogether again_. It wasn't. In fact to him, it was blatantly obvious that there was something huge missing from their reunion. Melissa. Did anybody else care that she wasn't there?

"No," he muttered before he could stop himself. Abby heard him and raised a questioning eyebrow, still laughing.

"What'd you say?" Nathan asked in between laughs, apparently having heard him as well. Jackson sighed in frustration and ran a hand through his hair.

"I said no. No the "gang" isn't all back together again!" he shouted angrily glaring at the others. The laughter died down almost instantly.

"Jackson..." Taylor whispered leaning forward off the bed as if she wanted to touch him. Eric pulled her back gently, his face serious.

"No, he's right," he said. Lex pulled away from Daley's protective embrace.

"I miss Mel too" he said hesitantly. Jackson's face softend at Lex's confession but he couldn't stop the anger from boiling over.

"We all miss her man," Nathan added trying to pat him on the arm, but Jackson brushed his hand away.

"Yeah? All of you?" he spat out. Daley stepped forward anxiously.

"Hey, that's not fair. We didn't mean anything," she insisted. Before Jackson could spew another angry retort the irritated nurse from before stuck her head in the room.

"Hey! What are all of you doing in here? There's rules you know! Only three visiters at a time! Take it to the cafeteria!"

"Sorry Nurse Matley," Ian apologized sheepishly. Nurse Matley hurrumped and marched away. Eric, determined to be peacemaker, cleared his throat.

"Um, yeah. I'm starving anyway. Let's move this party down to the cafeteria," Eric suggested jumping off the bed and dragging Taylor along with him.

"Yeah, that's a good idea," Nathan agreed quickly ushering Daley and Lex out into the hallway with Eric and Taylor. Abby hesitated.

"Jackson? Ian?" she asked.

"I'm really not in the mood," Jackson told her. Abby grimaced and looked expectantly at Ian.

"I'll be there soon. I want to call my mom and tell her that she doesn't have to come. Maybe since you guys are here she won't stress herself out about me being all alone and suffering,"

Abby bit her lip and looked back and forth from Ian to Jackson. Ian rolled his eyes and moved his wheelchair up next to her, pretending to push her out of the room.

"Go on, you better keep on eye on Eric. Too many cute nurses hanging around," Ian joked. Abby colored and lightly pushed Ian's chair away from her with the toe of her right sneaker.

"Oh yeah? Do you want me to keep on eye on Jory too? There's always a bunch of hot med students eating down in the cafeteria," Abby teased back before turning abruptly on her heel and dashing out the door. Ian, blushing slightly at Abby's retort, groaned and rolled back over to Jackson who had been standing stonily by the window. When Ian didn't make a move from to pick up the phone, Jackson got suspicious.

"What happened to calling your mom?" he asked gruffily. Ian shrugged.

"I lied," he informed him nonchalantly. Now it was Jackson's turn to roll his eyes.

"I'm fine," he insisted through gritted teeth. Ian raised a blonde eyebrow.

"Oh really? So the fact that the girl who has become your really good friend has been practically forced to another state and is going through a really horrible time doesn't affect you at all?"

Jackson grunted and refused to look Ian in the eye. Ian rolled his chair a little closer to Jackson so he couldn't escape.

"Look, I don't know you that well man but I've know Melissa forever and I miss her too. But I know you miss her more... I mean if it is anything like what Jory and I have or are or whatever..." Ian stuttered. Jackson looked sharply back at him.

"So you and Jory...?" He asked cautiously wanting to confirm. Ian rolled back slightly now that Jackson was turned toward him and colored once again.

"Um yeah. You and uh Melissa right?" Ian asked hesitantly, unsure now. Jackson blinked and swallowed nervously.

"I...yeah...I think so...I mean ever since we got back... I really don't know," Jackson admitted.

"But on the island?"

Jackson ran a hand through his hair uncomfortabley. "At the end we. . . talked. Before I wasn't sure...,"

"Because of Taylor?"

Jackson glanced at Ian curiously. Ian shrugged.

"Abby," he said as way of explanation. Jackson rolled his eyes once more. He turned to stare out the window again.

"She won't answer my calls. She barely answers any of my e-mails,"Jackson muttered in frustration.

"Well, Abby said that she wasn't really talking to anybody at all,"

"I know, but I thought she would at least..."

"Answer your's," Ian filled in for him. Jackson sighed.

"Yeah," he agreed.

"So what are you going to do?" Ian demanded. Jackson turned back to stare Ian once more.

"What do you mean?" he asked completely bewildered. Ian gazed intently at him.

"I mean...what do you plan on doing about it," Ian repeated. Jackson, irritated, thrust his hands in his pockets.

"I told you I keep cal-" Jackson began before Ian interrupted him.

"No, I mean...you are all about action aren't you? You were right with Eric and Abby in trying to find a way off the island. You weren't just happy to sit there and wait for rescue that might never come,"

"What...you mean go to Washington? Go to Forks?"

"That's exactly what I mean,"

Jackson started to shake his head. Ian grabbed his arm, startling him.

"Think about it man. Look...think what Melissa would do if the situation was reversed. If you were having a rough time of it do you think she would be happy with a few e-mails?"

Jackson paused. Ian was right of course. Melissa wouldn't have let him alone no matter what he said. Jackson ground his teeth together and started to pace the room.

"I can't just leave. Melissa and the McHughs moved mountains for me so I could stay here in Hartwell. If I skipped town it would be in violation of my probation," Jackson argued.

"We'll cover for you. Go just for the weekend. You can say that you are staying at Eric's for the weekend. Abby says his parents took off a couple days after we got back for a business trip. Not exactly a shining example of parenthood but helpful for us. They won't know anything,"

"You think Eric will go for it? Seriously?" Jackson asked with more than an ounce of skepticism. Ian smilled knowlingly.

"Dude, he was the one that offered his place for the cover-up,"

Jackson paused in mid-motion.

"What? How long have you guys been talking....Wait, it was his idea?" Jackson asked astonished. Ian shrugged.

"Well I guess we've all been talking about it since she left," Ian murmured remembering.

"And Eric?" Jackson demanded.

"Eric feels like he owes Mel a lot. This is his way of making it up to her," Ian replied before grinning widely. "Plus Abby has her ways," he added mischeviously. Jackson sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

"Okay," he told himself.

"Okay?" Ian asked eagerly. Jackson clenched his fists and turned to look Ian in the eyes.

"Okay, I'm going to Washington"

* * *

Reviews are always welcome!


	9. Infatuation

Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight. I do not own Flight 29 Down. However, as of today I do own a digital camera! Yippee!

Author's Note: Hello! Thanks for all of your reviews!

* * *

Seth had never really had a crush on anyone before. Sure, he had thought a few girls on the reservation were cute, but those thoughts were just in passing. There was always something to distract him. Sports, school, and most recently the death of his father. Oh and the werewolf thing. That was kind of a big deal. There was a whole new world to contend with. Suddenly the old Seth became this super cool version almost over night. And man, it was AWESOME! Of course there were drawbacks. Life definitely got more dangerous. However, life also got more interesting as well.

All of that changed when he met her. It sounded corny even to him and most definitely to his sister Leah. Somehow she had picked up on his feelings through his thoughts and his words. Stupid Leah. Now she wouldn't stop ragging on him. He knew it was all in good fun. He hadn't seen that side of Leah in a long time. It seemed to Seth that ever since Leah had left Sam's pack to join Jacob's her mood had substantially improved. He wasn't going to do anything to change that! It wasn't like he could deny it anyway. He was a goner ever since he had laid eyes on Melissa.

He saw it instantly, just as she was coming up the walk to the Black's house. Melissa was stunning. Really, she was. Her eyes were deep and kind despite being filled with sorrow. Her lips were full and pale pink. Long glossy hair cascaded down her back and swished when she moved. Seth had it bad alright, but he hadn't imprinted on her. Nah, he didn't feel anything close to those intense and life altering feelings. However, the more he saw her and the more he talked to her, his infatuation grew. It had been a week since Melissa arrived at Forks. A day after that Alice gave the all clear on the Volturi front. As soon as the threat was gone, Jacob had Seth and the rest of the pack "trailing" ,for lack of a better word, Melissa. The pack was supposed to be standing by just in case she finally shifted and needed help reigning in. Usually at least two members of the pack were supposed to be with her at all times. When she was at the Black's, which was most of the time, holed up in her room, two wolves would be hovering at the edge of the forest even if Jacob himself was inside in his human form. The constant surveillance was taking a toll on all of them. They waited in agitation for their lost sister to make the change. Jacob was the member who was with Melissa in his human form the most. It made the most sense, since he was her brother. Seth came in at a close second though. He tried to spend as much time as reasonable with her, befriending her. If she was aware of his crush she didn't show it. She was lost for now in her grief, but she always went willingly with him if he asked. He took pride in the fact that he was the one that made her smile the most. Leah had been pushed once by their mother to escort Melissa on a shopping trip. Leah had gone grumbling and complaining but returned thoughtful. Seth could tell that his sister was impressed with Melissa's fortitude. Seth could pick up varying emotions from Leah.

Melissa had yet to talk about her time on the island or about the death of her mother. She mostly listened patiently while whoever she was with rattled on uncomfortably. Seth didn't mind the silence on her end. He was quite content to chatter on about whatever was going through his mind whether it was his family, Jacob and Billy, school, or the history of the reservation. Well, the edited version of the reservation anyway. There was no need to tell her the supernatural bits. Melissa would know about them soon enough. She listened and sometimes Seth would see the prize-winning smile. He desperately wanted to ask her if she had a boyfriend or get Edward over there somehow and read her mind. However, he knew both ideas were stupid. First, because it was pathetic and second because it wasn't a good idea to bring any Cullens over to the reservation.

Seth had gone over there plenty of times himself during the week. He was Jacob's second eyes and ears at the Cullens'. Leah was obviously Jacob's Beta but she couldn't stand to even go in the Cullen house. If Jacob felt like he had to stay with Melissa and couldn't visit Nessie and Bella, he would send Seth. Seth truly liked the Cullens. He couldn't explain it. He just didn't see what everyone else did. The Cullens were good people, end of story. He didn't really care if they were "vampire" people or "werewolf" people. In fact, Seth was on his way that very second to do the second check of the day at the Cullens'. Jacob had gone that morning and gone hunting with Bella and Nessie. Since Alice had given the all clear both Jacob and the household felt safe enough to let her hunt. Nessie, of course, would have rather have the donated blood. Seth couldn't help but shiver at the thought. The whole drinking blood thing still creeped him out, friends or not. He loped soundlessly across the lawn. The mess he had made earlier that week had long been fixed and he treaded carefully as not to damage it again. Once he had shifted and pulled a pair of nylon shorts on he knocked quietly at the door. He knew they were already aware of his arrival, but he liked to be polite.

The door flew open and Seth's nostrils were assaulted by the stinging scent of a vampire.

"Do you have to change right in front of the house _dog_?" Rosalie snarled, one hand planted on her hip the other barring his entrance into the house. Seth reddened despite himself.

"Sorry," he stuttered. Rosalie looked him over scornfully. Seth squirmed under her gaze.

"It's not like there is much to look at anyways," she spat. Seth felt his mouth gape open in shock. Emmett's booming laughter carried through the house as he swiftly appeared behind his tempramental mate and placed a trunk-like arm around her delicate shoulder.

"It's just because you are used to the _real_ thing, Rose," he chortled, eyes twinkling. Rosalie swatted her sometimes husband playfully, momentarily disctracted from tormenting Seth. Emmett raised his eyebrows suggestively at her and before Seth knew it they both had bounded up the steps leaving Seth alone and somewhat taken back in the doorway.

"Sheesh," Seth muttered as he quietly shut the door behind him. No one else came to greet him and Seth really didn't feel like going upstairs to ask Rosalie and Emmett where Nessie was. He sighed and started to wander through the sunlit first floor of the house. Everything was silent and Seth marveled at the outright neatness of it all. His mom was pretty tidy, but not like this. Esme kept the house absolutely perfect. Seth nearly jumped out of his skin when Carlisle suddenly appeared beside him carrying a stack of worn looking books.

"Hello Seth," he greeted him warmly.

"Hey Dr. Cullen," Seth greeted him happily back when his heart rate had returned to normal.

"Second check of the day?" Carlise mused walking slowly down the hall.

"Yup," Seth answered. He briefly wondered if he was supposed to follow him. Dr. Cullen turned slightly and smiled again.

"Please, you are quite welcome to accompany me. Edward and Bella just put Nessie down for a nap anyway. All the activity this morning wore her out,"

Seth chuckled. "Well, at least she is like a little kid that way," he commented. Dr. Cullen laughed lightly with him.

Soon they turned into the cavernous room that was Dr. Carlisle Cullen's library. Light streamed in through several intricate stained glass windows, casting a warm glow throughout the room.

"Have a seat, Seth" Dr. Cullen said motioning to the large antique desk in the corner. Seth pulled one of the ornately carved chairs up to the desk while Dr. Cullen settled in behind it.

"How is Melissa doing?" Dr. Cullen asked politely while spreading the before mentioned stack of books out on the desk. Seth shifted in his seat.

"Uh, fine. Still no change. We're hoping it will happen soon though,"

Dr. Cullen nodded. "I see," he responded. When he didn't say anything else Seth felt inclined to say more.

"Later though I'm... I mean we are going to try and get her out of the house. We've planned to go to the La Push beach, have a campfire, and roast marshmallows," Seth said.

Dr. Cullen smiled and flipped open the largest book."A change of scenery might do her good," he agreed. They fell into a comfortable silence after that, Dr. Cullen became immersed in his reading and Seth succumbed to his thoughts. The soothing light of the library must of caused him to drop off to sleep because before he knew it he was dreaming.

_Suddenly he was on a beach, familiar to him, but not La Push's beach. The sand was almost white in the sunlight and free of any debris. The ocean pulled at the sand in a steady rythm and Seth was mesmerized by the matching blues of the water and sky. The wind gently blew his long hair across his face, blinding him momentarily, and he quickly pushed it back. He yelped in surprise._

_"Nessie? What?" he cried taking a step back. Before him stood not the childlike half-vampire he knew, but the grown up version Seth had seen in Jacob's thoughts._

_"Hello Seth," she greeted him._

_"This is Jacob's dream," he told her, confused. Nessie laughed, a beautiful melodic sound. She shook her head so her auburn curls bounced._

_"No, this is for you Seth," she said, still laughing, and pointed down the beach. There Melissa sat cross-legged in the sand. She was wearing khaki shorts and a frayed looking purple t-shirt. Her hair was in braids on either side of her head. Seth started to call out to her, but stopped when another form emerged from the trees and sat next to her. It was a guy he had never seen before, older, with a tight black t-shirt and ragged jeans. Melissa turned to look at him and Seth could no longer see her face. The two leaned forward into an embrace of some kind, a hug, or something else....before Seth could find out however, jealousy took over and he started to charge forward. _

_"Seth!" somone shouted. Seth growled in annoyance. He had to get over to Melissa!_

_"SETH!" _

_Suddenly Seth felt like he was falling._

"Ahh!" He yelled in surprise as the sand beneath his feet became the smooth wooden floor of Dr. Cullen's library. He landed smartly and winced as his head hit the ground.

"Oh no! I am so sorry!" a sing-song voice cried. Seth sat up quickly rubbing his head and glanced around. The voice belonged to Bella Cullen, who was now kneeling next to him, her pale forehead creased with worry. Seth cleared his throat and winced in embarrassment.

"It's alright Bells. I'm sorry I conked out, but..." Seth began while looking around. He was sitting next to a marroon sofa instead of the ornate chair he had fallen asleep in. "How did I get over here?".

Edward was the one who answered. He came up behind Bella, Nessie snuggled in his arms with a impish smile on her face. "When you dozed off Carlisle moved you to the sofa. He thought you would be more comfortable there. Of course, he didn't know you would fall off," Edward said smiling along with his daughter. Seth grimaced and climbed to his feet. Bella rose hesitantly with him.

"I'm so sorry Seth. I didn't mean to startle you. It's just we thought we should wake you. Carlisle mentioned you were taking Melissa down to the beach later and its getting kind of late," she told him still worried. Seth waved a hand at her.

"No permanent damage. It's all good. But what time is it?" he asked.

"It's 6:30 in the evening," Edward supplied for him. Seth groaned.

"Crap! I was supposed to be back at Jacob's by 5:00 pm," he cried. Bella laughed and rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, he called. I told him to get over it. You are all exhausted with tailing Melissa all the time and that's HIS fault. If he wasn't so uptight..."she trailed off.

"Well, love, in this case, I can't help but agree with him. New werewolves are volatile. He just wants to protect his family," Edward stated reasonably.

Bella crinkled her nose. "Of course you agree with him. You both are worrywarts," Bella complained.

Edward shook his head. "Wasn't it only a few days ago that you thought that I wasn't concerned enough?"

"That's different!That was Reneesme!"

Seth and Nessie locked eyes and the halfling rolled her big brown ones at her parents. She patted her father impatiently. Bella caught the motion and was immediatley quiet.

"Ah, well he's a bit busy right now, but I'm sure he'll visit you when he can,"Edward told her soothingly. Nessie patted her father again, curiousity evident on her face.

"Yes, with his sister, Melissa. Although I'm sure she looks a bit more feminine than that," he told her laughing. Bella frowned and quickly rushed to their side. Edward handed Nessie effortlessly into his wife's waiting arms.

"What do you think she looks like baby?" Bella whispered into her daughter's curls. Nessie placed her still small hands on her mother's smooth neck. Bella's face lit up and she snickered along with her husband.

"What?" Seth asked, smiling already from their mirth. Edward rolled his eyes and nodded to his wife.

"Pretty much Jacob with a dress on," Bella snorted. Seth laughed out loud imagining Jacob clad in one of Leah's dresses, a little black number that he hadn't seen since before she had split from Sam. Edward chuckled softly at Seth's mental picture and then glanced toward the grandfather clock on the opposite wall.

"Seth, as much as we love chatting with you..." Edward began. Seth nodded.

"Yeah, I got to go. I don't want to keep Mel- I mean Jacob waiting too long," Seth stumbled on the words and blushed. Edward and Bella exchanged a significant look. Nessie merely frowned at him from her mother's arms. Bella smiled slyly.

"You like her don't you?" Bella asked carefully. If he wasn't red before, Seth was sure he was now. Edward probably knew all this already. Even as he thought it the very same vampire nodded in confirmation. Seth sighed loudly.

"Fine! Yes I like her... I mean...yeah I really do. I mean I know she has been through a lot. Well, she's going to go through a lot more I know, but she is...she's just. She's so...," he sputtered.

"But you haven't imprinted on her?" Bella asked. Seth shook his head.

"No, no, nothing like that. I mean I've seen or felt it or I don't know through Jake's and the others' thoughts. No I definitely haven't... you know. I just..."he trailed off.

"Like her," Bella finished for him. Seth swallowed hard and nodded.

"Well, like I said ... or you said...I should get going," Seth cracked out. Nessie gave him a completely bewildered look as her parents said good-bye, both looking extremely amused. Seth blasted past them and out of the house barely stopping to say hi to Esme who was working in the flowerbeds. Only once he was in the cool shelter of the woods did he pause to try to recover himself. This crush was making him crazy! He knew he hadn't had imprinted on her, but he remembered the intense jealousy he felt in the dream. One thing was for sure. He had it bad.

The evening was already upon him and the sky was streaked with pink and orange of the setting sun. Crap. He had better hurry. Seth took a final deep restorative breath and tied his shorts around his leg. Once he had shifted into his wolf form he ran as quickly as he could back to La Push. As he got closer, he could hear Leah who was on duty that night alert the others to his arrival.

"You're late squirt!" Leah cajoled as he ran up beside her in the trees. Quinn, who was sitting serenely next to Leah, gave him a wolfey grin.

"Did you get cold feet?" he teased. Seth growled at him.

"Shut up! Just change already! Your extra clothes are by the tree behind Quinn," Leah commanded. Seth huffed and padded softly over to the tree. He shifted quickly and pulled the clothes on. It felt weird to have shoes on. He smoothed his shirt.

"How do I look?" Seth asked turning in a circle for his two packmates. Leah rolled her eyes and stuck out her tongue. Quinn just grinned again. Seth smiled and shrugged before starting down the trail that had been forged by the pack's constant surveillance trips. Before Seth could even knock the door was pulled open for him for the second time that day. Jacob Black stood menacingly in the doorway.

"Your late," he growled. Seth shrugged sheepishly.

"Yeah, sorry. I got held up at the Cullens," Seth replied in way of explaining. Seth could see something behind Jacob's eyes that led him to believe that Jacob was more angry that he couldn't be there than he was actually mad at Seth for showing up late.

"Whatever. Look she's in the living room with Billy. Somehow he's actually got her talking about her friends and the time on the island," Jacob whispered. Seth's eyes widened in surprise. Jacob shrugged and crossed his arms over his formidable chest.

"Yeah, I know. Of all people I thought she would open up to you first," Jacob replied giving Seth a meaningful look. Seth shuffled his feet uncomfortably. He had thought that too. In fact he was kind of disappointed that he wasn't the first one Melissa had opened up to.

"I guess it's good she's talking," Seth suggested not sure if he really meant it or not. Jacob shrugged.

"Yeah, it must be all those websites Billy's been visiting," Jacob muttered.

"What?"

"Nothing. Look just get in there. I don't think she should be out too late," Jacob ordered. Seth nodded obediently. Jacob stared at him for a second and then shouted over his shoulder back into the house.

"Seth's here!" he yelled and then bounded up the steps to the second floor where Seth knew he would jump out of the window in his room to join Leah and relieve Quil.

"We're in here son!" Billy called from the living room.

"Okay," Seth responded. He quietly entered the Black's house closing the door behind him. As he made his way through the kitchen he caught a whiff of meat sauce that was simmering on the stove. Seth gave a little wave as he entered the living room. Both Billy and Melissa were smiling. Melissa was sitting at the end of the sofa with her feet curled under her and Billy had his chair parked right next to it. They looked rather comfortable. Despite the envy he felt, Seth was glad that Melissa and her newly found Dad were getting closer.

"Looks like you guys are having a good time," Seth commented as he plopped down next to Melissa on the couch. She grinned at him happily causing him to grin in return. He just couldn't help it. Her smile, although elusive, was contagious.

"We were just talking," she told him.

"Cool," he replied breathlessly. Billy caught Seth's eye over Melissa's shoulder and winked. Seth cleared his throat and turned his attention back to Melissa who was fiddling nervously with the cuff of her navy Hartwell sweatshirt.

"Well, we should probably get going," Seth began.

"That's right! Don't want to be out too late. I've got to get back to the sauce. I don't want it to burn," Billy jumped in. Billy patted Melissa's shoulder and winked again at Seth as he moved back to the kitchen. Seth blushed hoping Melissa didn't catch it. Thankfully she was still considering her sweatshirt.

"Do you think I'll need anything warmer than this?" she asked frowning slightly. Seth was transfixed on the corner of her mouth that was tugging downward in consternation. His mind was instantly full of ways to correct the situation.

"Seth?" Melissa asked. Seth blinked quickly trying to focus again.

"Uh, I think you'll be fine. It's not bad. Plus we'll have the fire too to keep us warm,"

Melissa's lovely face lit up at his words.

"Oh I've got to show you something!" she said excitedly, jumping up from the couch and into the kitchen.

Seth followed her and saw her pull out a large bag of colored marshmallows from the pantry.

"These are so good when roasted," Melissa gushed.

"Cool I've never had this kind before. I've just had plain boring white ones,"

"Well these are so much better than the plain boring white ones. Trust me" Melissa assured him.

"We'll see," Seth teased waggling his eyebrows at her. Melissa laughed and leaned around him to say good-bye to Billy who was stirring the sauce slowly.

"Be careful," Billy said. Seth nodded and ushered Melissa outside.

They walked in silence for awhile along a well worn trail, this time by human feet instead of the heavy paws of the pack.

"So uh, when did you get the marshmallows?" Seth asked when the silence became too much. Melissa seemed to be deep in thought and Seth had to repeat his question.

"Oh, um, when Leah took me shopping the other day we stopped in the grocery," She told him.

"Ah," Seth said, "So um, what did you think of Leah?"

Melissa smiled slightly and gazed at her shoe laces.

"What? What did she do? I know she can be a-" Seth began hurriedly. Melissa shook her head with vigor.

"No! She was great actually. She didn't treat me with little kid gloves, you know?"

"Oh," Seth remarked in surprise. Did he treat her with little kid gloves? Jacob definitely did. Billy did. His mom certainly did. Before he could work up the courage to ask her they reached the beach.

"Wow," Meliss whispered.

"I know beautiful right?" Seth agreed eagerly and looked back at her. However, her face was a mask of fear.

"What? What's wrong?" he asked. Melissa's eyes grew wider as they took in their surroundings. She swallowed nervously. Seth looked around wildly concerned she had seen one of the pack members through the trees. But even with his improved eyesight he couldn't see anything. Jake and Leah were keeping well hidden. Melissa shook her head as if she was trying to dislodge some unwanted thought from her head.

"Here let's sit down," Seth suggested placing a guiding hand on the small of her back. He gently led her to a drift wood log big enough to sit on. Melissa's eyes were fixed on some unseen horror, her knuckles were white as she gripped the log.

"What is it Melissa? You can tell me," Seth whispered. Melissa glanced sharply at him and then back to the unseen place. She licked her lips.

"It's just I have been having these dreams..." she began softly. Seth waited silently watching her face.

"It started on the island. I had these intense dreams every night. I thought it was just the stress and the fear of being stranded there, but then we were rescued and I stil dreamt of the pounding, pounding, pounding!" Melissa explained her voice getting louder and louder. She turned to look at him, her face filled with confusion, fear, and wonder. "And then I came here and it's just like in my dreams,"

"What is?" Seth asked.

Melissa swept her arm out in a helpless fashion.

"Here. Forks. La Push. This forest. This place." Melissa cried in frustration. Seth reached out to calm her but she shook his hand away. "I don't know why. I don't know. But I've been dreaming about this place for weeks. I've seen this beach! Clear as day! And the pounding doesn't stop. They are all around me. Even during the day. I can sometimes see them out of the corner of my eye!" Melissa was shouting now, tears starting to well up in her eyes.

Seth could sense the uneasy movements of Jake and Leah behind him but he wasn't focused on that. All he could think of was consoling Melissa. But something was confusing him.

"Who's 'them' Melissa? Who do you see out of the corner of your eyes?" he asked softly. She gazed at him, searching.

"The wolves," she whispered back.

"W-wolves," Seth stuttered. Melissa hugged herself tightly and nodded, the tears were flowing in earnest now.

"It's insane. I know it is insane. But sometimes...sometimes I feel like I'm one of them," she told him in a cracked voice. Swept up in the raw emotion in her voice and across her face, Seth scooped her next to him and fastened his arm securely around her waist.

"You're not crazy," he told her firmly.

"I'm not?" she asked faintly. Seth rested his chin on her shoulder to better look into her dark eyes.

"Nope," he said and then he kissed her softly on the cheek.

"Mel? What the...?" A strange and harsh voice tore Seth away from her. Seth lept up. Melissa had twisted around, stilling sitting, eyes wide with shock. A hand was placed over the cheek his lips had just touched, almost as if she was ashamed. Seth felt the hurt for only a second until the reality of who was actually standing before them hit him.

"Jackson?" Melissa whispered. Seth did a double-take. It was that guy! This Jackson guy was the same one he had almost pummeled in the dream, except now in real life he looked like someone had already ripped open his chest and stomped on his heart.

Beside Seth Melissa had began to quake. Quickly the shaking became more violent causing the drift wood to move with her and stab Seth in the leg. When Seth turned to her Melissa's eyes were rolled back and her mouth was gaping open. She screamed, long and piercing. He couldn't do anything to stop it. Melissa's human flesh tore away and the wolf burst through snarling. She was pure white.

Melissa lunged at Jackson her jaws aimed straight for his throat.

* * *

Author's Note: Thanks for reading! Reviews are always welcome! I will try and have more regular updates.


	10. Chaos

Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight or Flight 29 Down. Never have. Never will.

Author's Note: Thanks for all of the reviews! I know many of you are worried about Jackson. This chapter should answer your questions. You'll notice that this chapter is in several points of view in order to capture the chaos of the first few hours.

It happened in an instant. One second Jacob and Leah were watching in uneasy embarrassment as Seth consoled Melissa and in the next instant Melissa had shifted and was tearing into her friend, Cody Jackson. Jacob recognized him from the news articles Billy had found on the Internet. There wasn't much about him. The article had said he had transferred early in the year to Hartwell High and he was on the trip through scholarship. There was one picture of him that was in all the articles. He was standing alone on the beach looking back into the jungle, a look of deep concentration on his face. His entire persona shouted "dark and broody". He was probably someone Jacob would have identified with before Nessie.

Cody Jackson had come upon La Push beach without warning. He came from a southern trail that began on the outskirts of town and barely ever saw human traffic. The path was rocky, unpredictable, and dangerous. There was no way Jacob would have ever anticipated it. They smelled him before they saw him. Jacob tensed when the distinctly human scent hit his nose.

"_What?"_ Leah demanded in his mind.

"_Someone's coming. Southern trail,"_ he told her. Leah turned her head and sniffed the air.

"_Human at least,"_ she replied. _"An experienced hiker from the Rez?"_

Before Jacob could respond the intruder emerged from the trees. Jacob flashed on the article he had seen Billy reading before as Leah sprang forward.

"_Hold it! Stop! Leah! Stop!"_ Jacob commanded, lunging in front of her.

"_What?"_

"_I recognize him. He was on the island with Melissa. I'm pretty sure he is a friend of hers,"_

" _So?" _Leah snapped pushing against him.

"_Stop! Let's just wait a second. Wait. Just wait. He's not a threat. Well, not compared to Melissa flipping out and changing in front of him when a giant wolf comes racing at them anyways,"_

Leah huffed and ceased struggling.

"_Fine. But if that thug makes any moves I'll …what is that idiot doing?"_

Jacob whipped around. While he had been trying to keep Leah from blowing their cover Seth had pulled Melissa even closer. He looked like he was resting his head on her shoulder. Their faces were dangerously close together.

"_Oh if he knows what's good for him…" _Jacob muttered.

He didn't. Seth kissed Melissa on the cheek.

"_Ack!''_ Leah groaned.

"_That stupid…I'm gonna kill him!"_ Jacob snarled. He knew this was inevitable. But still, this was his sister. He was allowed to be pissed.

"_Doesn't look like you are the only one,"_ Leah muttered flicking her head to where the southern path came onto the beach. Cody Jackson's face was contorted in anger and hurt.

"Melissa! What the he-..." Jackson shouted before becoming eerily still.

Melissa had begun to quake.

The guy didn't even have enough time to finish his sentence before a full grown wolf ripped into him.

Jacob couldn't find one human thought in her mind. It was all animal. The only thing they could do to stop her was to force her away. He rammed into her over and over. Leah snipped and bit at Melissa's flank.

_"She's huge!"_ Leah yelled to him in shock. She was. Much bigger than Leah. But not as big as Jacob. He gathered all of his strength and rammed into her again. Melissa toppled over. Her white fur was soaked in blood.

_"We've got to run her out of here,"_ Jacob yelled back. Leah tried to nip Melissa again, but the she sprang to her feet and ran to the trees.

_"Come on!"_ Jacob commanded Leah who had paused to stare back at her brother. Seth stood in shock over the brutalized form of Cody Jackson.

_"Leah!"_ Jacob yelled again. Leah shook her head and began to run. They followed Melissa into the trees.

Seth was frozen in shock. She was massive. Melissa's wolf form was much bigger than Leah and probably bigger than him. With her pure white fur, she looked as if she was a polar bear instead of a wolf. He watched mind reeling as Leah and Jacob came bursting through the trees . Jacob rammed into her hard and Leah sunk her teeth into Melissa's flank. Melissa howled, her muzzle covered in bright red blood. Jacob rammed into her again and she toppled over, off of Jackson. Leah made to bite her again, but Melissa sprang to her feet and raced to the trees. Seth and Leah followed at her heels.

It was only then that Seth began to breathe again. He didn't think. He just let his instincts, his very human instincts, take over.

Jackson lay motionless in the sand. Seth sprinted to his side and sank to his knees. He was covered in blood and barely breathing. Both his legs and his right arm were bent at horrific angles and his chest was covered in gashes. Seth could see a rib glistening through the blood. Jacob and Leah had pulled Melissa off of him just as she was going for his throat. Two deep puncture marks were bleeding profusely on the left side of Jackson's neck. Seth tore off as much of his clothes as he could to make rude tourniquets and bandages to stop the bleeding. He then gathered Jackson's limp form in his arms and began to run.

When Seth arrived at the Cullen's he was drenched in sweat and out of breath. He was clutching Melissa's friend tightly to his chest. Seth didn't know if he was still breathing. He screamed for Carlisle as he ran up the lawn. Seth knew it was all his fault. This guy was dying because he had been the idiot to kiss Melissa. He should have known better. He should have waited. The Cullen's front door slammed open as both Dr. Cullen and Edward sprinted onto the lawn to meet him. Carlisle pulled Jackson's body out of Seth's arms and ran back into the house leaving the door gaping open. Seth collapsed to the ground panting.

"Melissa...she...it wasn't her fault. She didn't know what she...It's my fault. It's my fault..." Seth gasped. Edward knelt beside him.

"Seth it's not your fault. I can see what happened in your mind. There was no way you could have stopped it. It's not your fault," he told Seth calmly.

Seth grasped at the grass pulling up chunks of it.

"No, no it's my fault. If I hadn't. If I had waited until ...," Seth paused and looked up at Edward. "He's going to die isn't he?". Something passed behind Edward's eyes but he didn't answer.

"Is he?" Seth demanded.

"Yes," Edward replied before rising to his feet and pulling Seth with him.

They ran north. Melissa's animal instincts were leading her farther and farther away from civilization and for that Jacob was thankful. They had run out of range of both packs only a few miles ago. Before he lost touch Jacob was able to reach Sam to alert him of what was going on. After that it was quiet. Both Jacob and Leah were stuck in their own minds contemplating the confounding situation. They could not get through to Melissa. Her mind was a solid wall. As far as either of them could tell there was nothing human in her thoughts. She was all wolf.

_"It doesn't make any sense!"_ Leah cried for the umpteenth time. _"No one, not even Sam, was so lost in the change. Why is this happening? And why in the world is she so freaking huge? "_

_"I don't know for sure Leah,"_ Jacob told her again warily. _"Maybe because she was separated from the tribe for so long or all the crap that happened to her before she came here. Maybe it's taking awhile for her mind to recover and resurface. I don't know. As for why she is so much bigger than you, I have no clue,"_

_"It doesn't make sense,"_ she muttered. Jacob sighed and focused his attention on Melissa.

_"Melissa! It's alright! Stop! Listen to me! Remember who you are! C'mon! Remember!"_ he demanded shooting images of the last couple days into her mind.

Nothing.

They kept running.

Seth didn't go inside right away. After Edward had pulled Seth to his feet he had dashed back into the house without a word. Seth let the last few seconds run through his mind.

"_He's going to die isn't he?". Something passed behind Edward's eyes but he didn't answer._

_"Is he?" Seth demanded._

_"Yes," Edward replied._

Seth let out a strangled cry and buried his face in his hands. He willed tears to emerge from his eyes, but all he felt was hollow fear. What had he done? They warned him. Jacob had warned him not to mess around with Melissa. Well, not in so many words. But he had told him to wait. He told him to wait until it was over. But Seth couldn't. He was weak. He couldn't resist the temptation to get closer to her and to...kiss her. Now this Cody Jackson guy was… dying and by Melissa's hand no less. It was Seth's fault. It was all his fault. What would the pack think? What would Melissa think? She would hate him. Seth kicked the ground in frustration leaving a muddy welt. Seth paused and groaned in frustration at the sight of the mess he had made. Again. Esme would probably hate him too no doubt. Great. The sun was setting. The light was almost completely gone. Seth could see a light flick on in one of the upstairs rooms. Seth squinted trying to place the room in the house. It was the room Jacob had stared at uneasily while playing with Nessie when Edward let him the first time. It was the room they had kept Bella when...

"No," Seth gasped. He barreled into the empty house and paused as he slid slightly. Blood had splattered on the floor. No doubt the rest of the Cullens, including Bella and Nessie, had vacated to the cottage when faced with it. He heard scraping against the wood floor on the second level. Seth raced up the steps two at a time. By time he got to the room they had placed Jackson's bloody body on a hospital no doubt left over from a few weeks before. Edward was pushing the rest of the ordinary furniture against the wall. Carlisle was busy inserting an IV into the boy's arm.

"What the hell do you think are you are doing? You are supposed to help him! Why are you doing this?" Seth demanded angrily. Carlisle looked up at him sadly and then pleadingly at Edward. Edward nodded and walked swiftly over to where Seth stood outraged in the doorway.

"Seth, he's going to die. He only has minutes left," Edward told him softly.

"Minutes left until what?" Seth snarled, while watching Carlisle hang a bag of fluid through narrowed eyes. Edward gazed at him steadily.

"Until he dies and we will no longer be able save him,"

Seth shook his head violently.

"No, no, NO! This isn't saving him! Changing him isn't saving him! You know this Edward! I thought you knew this! How can you do this?"

Edward reached out to calm him and Seth hit his hand away.

"You are stealing his soul!" Seth screamed at him. Edward cringed but shook his head.

"It's the only way," Edward told him.

"No," Seth repeated vehemently. Before Seth could react, Edward grabbed him by the shoulders.

"I know this seems monstrous to you. I hate, I loathe doing this but you don't understand. You don't know what I know. You have to trust me. This is different. We have to do this," Edward pleaded. Seth stared back at him confused.

"Do you trust me Seth?" Edward demanded. Seth swallowed hard. He trusted Edward with his life. But how was this okay? This wasn't Bella. Bella was meant to be with Edward and she chose this life, the life of a vampire. She had made the choice to risk her soul. Jackson had no choice in the matter. How could Seth let Edward do this? But then...how could Seth live with himself if he let Jackson die and be eradicated from the world completely? Spirits help him.

"Do it," Seth croaked. Edward nodded and went to help Carlisle restrain the boy. Seth slid to the ground helplessly.

"The morphine?" Edward asked. Carlisle shook his head.

"He can take it," Edward said with certainty. Carlisle raised a golden eyebrow.

"Trust me," Edward said firmly.

"That's what you keep saying," Seth groaned. Edward turned back to look at him.

"Why don't you get some sleep Seth. You'll see what I mean,"

Now it was Seth's turn to raise an eyebrow. Edward smiled slightly.

"Edward," Carlisle urged. Edward turned quickly back to the situation at hand. Edward shook his head to some unanswered question.

"I'll do it," He said stretching his hand out to Carlisle. To Seth's horror Dr. Cullen placed a rather large needle into Edward's stone hand. Seth couldn't stop himself from crying out as Edward thrust the needle into the boy's chest and injected the venom directly into his heart.

After running constantly for almost two hours Melissa stopped dead in her tracks. Her muscles hunched and tensed, cold animal eyes staring blankly into the trees. Jacob and Leah slowed their gait as not to run into her. Jacob raked her mind but hit the same wall as he did before.

_"What's happening?"_ Leah wondered anxiously. Jacob shook his shaggy head. They stood in silence until Melissa threw her massive head back and began howling in agony.

_"What the h-"_ Leah began but Jacob stopped her with a glare.

_"Melissa?"_ He asked as she continued to howl. Melissa responded with a very human scream just as agonized as her wolf's howls.

_"What have I done!?_

* * *

Author's Note: What is Edward talking about? What does he know? Why should we trust him and what does sleep have to do with it? The next chapter will be from Edward's point of view and hopefully answer all of these questions!


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